


Civilian Pianist

by WriterandArtist27



Series: Starry Sky [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Everyone Needs A Hug, Found Family, Friendship, Healing from trauma, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Music, Musical References, Parents As People, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, Platonic Relationships, Pre-Canon, Reincarnation, Self-Insert, Third Shinobi War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-19
Updated: 2017-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-05 17:06:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 75,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17922884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WriterandArtist27/pseuds/WriterandArtist27
Summary: FF.Net Summary: [SI-OC] I had hoped I wouldn't die so early in life. And honestly, I wasn't good ninja material. The most I knew was how to twirl a stick and ram a backpack filled with school supplies on someone's head — and yet some entity decided to plop me down into a world where you're either a ninja or a civilian — and the mortality rate wasn't good either way. My choice was kinda obvious.Originally posted on FF.Net on 10/16/2016. Cross-post for accessibility and discussion. Slow update speed from cross-posting from FF.Net and editing older chapters.





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Note (3/5/2019): So for those of you new readers coming in, this is my first ever fanfiction, going into the Self-Insert OC genre. There may be a few mistakes going into the earlier chapters, but if you can bear with that and my time revising, then I think you’re home free! 
> 
> It's why updates are slow, because I'm trying to edit the earlier chapters to be up to date with the other more recent updates found on FFN. Not to mention, these early chapters, I hate. So much, because of how old this part of my writing is. The Sea and Stars and the like on this account reflect my writing that's come since this story, but that doesn't mean I've stopped growing. I guess, my posting the original start of everything here means people get to see how Tomoko was back then, and how she's still growing now. 
> 
> Thank you for at least trying out my story. Knowing that someone is at least enjoying Tomoko’s beginnings is enjoyable for me. 
> 
> And putting this out here, I want to thank the creators of Dreaming of Sunshine, Inoue Shiori, Catch Your Breath, and Deja Vu no Jutsu for having inspired me in taking this step. Up until now, I thought I would only really be reviewing other people's stories, but they all inspired me into trying something of my own free will. I'll just go with the flow and see how this goes, so enjoy!

_ Prologue _

...So I died.

I’m not really sure how to explain it to you without sounding really emotional and teary all at once, but I’ll do my best. In fact, I’m not really sure how it happened myself. I was just going to college like all the other freshmen were, and one night, when waiting for my parents to pick me up, some random dude decided to drive recklessly around and caught me when I wasn’t paying attention.

It’s ironic considering that I had recently failed my 2nd behind-the-wheel driving test and was supposed to improve on ‘scanning the traffic’. 

But still. I had died. And it hurt—a lot.

When I had realized what had happened, it was already too late. The last thing I remember is seeing Mom’s tearful face before I went away. 

I wasn’t even able to tell Leo, my wonderful, sweet boyfriend, “I love you” or even “Goodbye.” 

That’s probably why it hurt so much, ascending to someplace else. Dying meant leaving all your loved ones behind, and honestly, a part of me kept blaming myself for ending up in that situation where the dude hit me. After somewhat of a traumatizing incident when I was 10, I had vowed then to do whatever I could so that my loved ones wouldn’t have to cry anymore. All of my work would go into making them happy. That incident was my fault—and I didn’t want to mess up again. 

But here I was, ascending to a place where my loved ones couldn’t reach me, leaving them alone. Mom and Dad, my big brother, Leo, Josh, all my friends—I had to leave them behind, and I just didn’t want to. 

To me, my death was far too early. I had just started maturing emotionally and bonding with everyone again after that incident and yet some dude just had to ruin everything. 

…At this point, I’m not sure if my death was my fault or his. But I have a strange feeling that many of my loved ones will be after the guy later on. 

Once I had left my old body behind, my spirit apparently continued to wander. Where? I’m not really sure what to tell you. I was never really religious aside from the shared Buddhist family background I got from my mom, and the last I checked there wasn’t really a lot of talk on life after death. Sure, I’ve talked to some Buddhists who acknowledged the existence of ghosts, but just by looking around, I could tell I wasn’t in the world I was born in.

Everything was white. Just, plain white. No sound, no color, no people.

It was just me. 

Which is why when my surroundings changed that I did the only thing I could do.

Cry like a bitch. 

…Excuse me for cursing, but that was kinda justified since I wasn’t expecting to see new faces in front of me and for my hands to be so small.


	2. Knowing What's Going On

_Chapter 1: Knowing What’s Going On_

I didn’t really know where I was at first. All I knew was that I was wet, tired, and hungry. But when I tried to voice these thoughts, all that came out were wails.

Why was I wailing? Last I checked, I was a growing 18 year old teenage girl, thank you very much. 

It was only when the voices above me began to sing a soft lullaby that I really began to understand the situation.

I had been reincarnated as a small baby wailing for care from my new parents. While the person holding me continued to sing a tune I couldn’t recognize, my somewhat-adult brain kept on questioning things. 

_ Why me? Why was I reincarnated? Why do I still remember everything from before? _ These thoughts continued to swirl through my head, even when leaving the nursery and joining my new family at home. Honestly, it’s still hard to think of them as ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad’, because I still remember my old family—and I couldn’t help but miss them.

That’s probably why I cried so much initially when growing up as a toddler. When I look back on it, I feel bad for my new parents since they had to deal with a large amount of my babyish tantrums. Attempting to hold down said tantrums didn’t work either, since my new body acted very similar to my old one in being emotional like all hell. I wouldn’t have blamed them for trying to give me up to someone else—because I was a  _ loud _ baby. 

In my previous life, Mom and Dad said that I was rather mild-mannered and a good kid, but now? If I didn’t know any better, I probably would have appeared to be a small she-devil in disguise. But when thinking on it, I had good reasons for my tantrums. 

No matter what my new family tried to do, I couldn’t help but remember everyone from my past life. Everything my new parents did reminded me of what I once had. 

My mom, occasionally singing while washing dishes and calling me, ‘her smart little girl,’ in that gentle voice of hers when I was nervous about going into college.

My dad, being the ‘Vietnamese Batman’ as I would say, warmly saying, “I love you,” when I would hug him before going to bed. 

My big brother, who would sarcastically say, “Go away,” while accepting one of my hugs in the middle of the night.

My only female cousin on the maternal side of the family, acting as the big sister I always wanted by buying Hello Kitty pencils and giving me advice.

Josh, one of my best friends (and the first to find out I was ticklish) who would happily pinch my cheeks when I pouted.

Leo, my lovable asshole boyfriend of 2 years, kissing me as a way of shutting me up when I worried too much about his health.

I missed everyone, and that showed quite a bit when I was growing up—even through the potty training and walking. I hope I wasn’t too much of a pain (considering I cried so much to where even at that age, I could see the dark bags under my parents’ eyes) since it took about a year and a half to finally let everything go.

Even if I did cry about it, nothing would change. I had died and was given new life wherever I was now, and I had to start enjoying that life a little more. 

It was just a bit hard though when my infant ears finally started to recognize my new name and the language my new family were talking in.

_ “Nakanaide, Tomoko-chan, nakanaide.”  _ Japanese…And ‘Tomoko-chan’?

Yep, turns out my new name is Hoshino Tomoko, born September 24th. And for some reason, I felt screwed. 

Then again, considering that one of the first things I saw was the  _ freaking Hokage Monument _ , you would share the same sentiment. 


	3. Meeting an Old Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anything here except Tomoko. And for those who know me, if you can guess the song mentioned here in this chapter, woo hoo! Here’s a hug from me. :) Enjoy!
> 
> ...Oh, one last thing! Near the end of the chapter, play HypochondriacPiano’s rendition of Ventus’s Theme from Kingdom Hearts! I assure you — it’ll fit the mood!

_ Chapter 2: Meeting an Old Friend _

The Hokage Monument. Not really the best image for an infant to see, considering said infant was a reincarnated, emotional teenager still dealing with the loss of her previous life. 

Kinda made worse when seeing _who_ exactly was carved there. And as of that moment, there were only three faces.

Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Hiruzen Sarutobi. 

Respectively, the First, Second, and Third Hokages. 

Immediately, the logical part of me was attempting to rationalize  _ what the hell _ exactly happened that landed me here in the first place. To me, I was just panicking inside, trying to figure out how in all fucking hells I ended up in the  _ Naruto-verse _ of all places. 

_ I’m not even ninja material and yet I’m reborn in a world full of goddamn ninjas who are completely willing to kill anybody without a single thought. Oh  _ **_joy_ ** _.  _

To everyone else, my new parents included, it was another bawling session. And with my baby fists shaking in the air added in. 

…and just when I had gotten over the first phase of crying too… 

My new Dad kinda started to panic a little, and immediately passed me to my new Mom. Despite the immense worry in her blue eyes, she took charge by rocking me gently in her arms, humming a small tune. 

Strangely, I recognized the song, despite my infant hearing not being the best yet. If anything, it sounded eerily familiar to another song I used to sing in my past life. 

“ _ Red…fills my dreams… _ ” I couldn’t really piece together any more words before it lulled me to a deep sleep. 

Time passed somewhat quickly after that. Being a toddler with a teenager’s mindset, I didn’t really grasp how much had happened since that realization. If anything, after seeing those stone faces, I started to adjust being a new baby in the Narutoverse, babbling and playing with my new parents, celebrating one or two birthday parties.

My first words were apparently ‘Papa’ and ‘Mama,’ in that order respectively. Apparently even in this new life, I still was a Daddy’s girl. Dad seemed to puff out his chest with pride when it happened while Mom just squealed a bit before hugging me.

...I guess hugging runs in the family too, since I know I’ll be hugging people in the future, genetics or not. 

During those days, the parties weren’t much. If anything, I could only remember smudges of black, white, and brown hair.  From what I could tell, my parents were well-known, but not to the point of attracting unnecessary attention. I  _ could’ve sworn _ I saw the Third Hokage or Sakumo Hatake, but the logical part of me threw that idea out the window.

Why would the Professor OR the White Fang come to the birthday party of a baby girl they barely knew in the first place?

…Ninja politics. Woo hoo! 

Ahem.

…Anyways.

I was around 3 when I first saw the grand piano.

At this time, I was at the age where I could finally start to take in my surroundings and start interacting with them like a growing person rather than the bawling baby I started out as. 

Turns out my new Mom’s name was Hikari and Dad’s was Judai, and they both worked ( _ and owned! _ ) a family cafe that had recently opened in Konoha. I’m not sure how long it had been running, but considering it was there all of my wailing baby years, my new parents probably started it long before having me. 

It was when Mom and Dad were cleaning up the cafe one morning that I took the time out of my toddler-wandering to walk over to it.

Even at that age, I could tell it was a good piano, with finely-tuned keys that shined in the sunlight, a stand that barely showed any fingerprints made specifically for music sheets, and strings that could easily cut someone’s finger if pricked the wrong way. 

It was a shiny, new piano — and even though I was sure I wasn’t allowed to touch it - I crawled my way up onto the black bench and pressed a white key.

From my past memories, it was the middle C key —  the beginning of the right hand of the beginner piano level. 

Honestly, I can’t really recall a lot of my past experience with the piano. Back in my previous life, where Naruto was just an anime and  _ not my life _ , I had played piano for a few years. Thing is, I  _ sucked _ at reading notes, and by the time I entered middle school, I had just lost inspiration for playing it again. Even so, the piano acted as my friend, to where my old family still kept the electronic one I used in those days. I still remember pulling up YouTube during study sessions just to play a piano cover of some anime/manga/game song. 

_ Kingdom Hearts _ and _ RWBY _ were some of my favorites when searching for piano covers.

That’s why it shocked me when my hands — my tiny, three year old hands — started to move from my own unconscious will, naturally playing the song of a boy fighting for his friends before being forced to sleep.

_ Ven… _

The piano crooned softly, much like an old friend while the soft notes gently hit my ears, bringing to mind the image of that boy, decked in Keyblade Armor and trying to fight the enemy with his two best friends. 

By the time the song had finished, I had captured the attention of my parents, and Mom basically summed up my reaction in a few words.

_ “Tomoko-chan…did you just play that all by yourself? _ ”

“…Eh?”

Well, this was a game-changer.


	4. Brave Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anything except Tomoko. The song to play in the background for this chapter would be Animenz Piano Sheets’ rendition of Brave Heart from Digimon Adventure. Tomoko doesn’t directly play the song here, but it fits the mood.

_ Chapter 3: Brave Heart _

…Well, to bring you up to speed, I just recently found out that I’m a natural at playing piano from memory. What does that mean exactly? I’m not really sure how to put it into a few simple words, but I’ll do my best.

Somehow, when touching that lovely grand piano sitting smack dab in the middle of my new family’s cafe, I was able to play the entirety of Ventus’s theme from  _ Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep _ just from my memories of hearing the song over and over. 

If I didn’t lose you just now, then hooray! You get a hug!

But yeah. Apparently, in my new life, my skills in the piano significantly improved to where I unconsciously knew which key to press at the right time. 

Anywhere else, I would be considered a prodigy. Heck, even my new parents seemed to think about my new ability in this way. 

But I didn’t. If anything, my piano skills was just a byproduct of my reincarnation. It’s not really anything outstanding — I just played songs from my old life as well as the experts who handled that sort of thing for all of their lives. Right now, it felt like I was a copycat with barely any originality since I was just mimicking the playing styles of the other pianists I had heard in the 18 years I had before. I have a feeling that if you tried to put music sheets in front of me, I would still see it as black dots lining the pages and not for the beautiful music it’s supposed to be. 

But still — I had this ability anyway. And what was I supposed to do with it in a world where it’s kill, be killed, or try to avoid it all and survive? 

Despite my thoughts, Mom and Dad quickly began to talk to each other in soft, hushed voices behind the counter, glancing at me every now and then. Even though I couldn’t fully hear what they were saying due to my age as a 3 year old, I could tell that they were talking about me and my new piano skill. 

A small part of me was hoping that they knew what to do to help me make a decision with my life. 

Soon enough, Dad came over to me, kneeling to my height (which was a little taller due to the piano bench) and looking at me in the eye. “Tomoko-chan, could you play that song again?”

I blinked. “Sure, but why? A-am I in trouble, Daddy?” 

My new father immediately shook his head, brown hair whipping his face. “Of course not, sweetie!” he said fiercely, hand reaching out to rest on my head. “Mommy and Daddy just want to see you play a bit.”

Despite my teenage mind, my childish instincts didn’t really question Dad’s words, immediately touching the keys and playing the theme of the blonde boy wielding the power of wind. The music once again came naturally to me, and my memory vividly recalled every note that was supposed to be played. It was only 3 minutes in the outside world, but to me, it felt like I was immersed in the emotion of the song itself, feeling Ven’s suffering and kindness all at once. 

Once my small hands pressed the last key, I turned to look at Dad again. It was at this moment that I really got to see my new Dad for who he was, because I never really took notice of it during my crying toddler days. For once, a thoughtful expression was on his face, chin stubble somewhat furrowed from his intense look. The two-toned brown mop of hair on his head complimented the bright brown of his eyes, exposing small hints of red and green in the orbs. 

Even though he was only thinking, my childish side got the better of me. “Wh-What’s the matter, Daddy? D-Did I do something wrong?” Small bits of tears got into my eyes, and it was at this point Dad started to focus on me again, expression morphing into one of gentle concern. 

“Oh, Tomoko,” Dad smiled softly, picking me up from the tall piano bench to sit on his lap, tucking my head under his chin. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Daddy’s just surprised that you inherited the family’s love for music so early.” 

_ Family? _

Did that mean that my new piano ability was genetic?

I squirmed a little in Dad’s hold to look at him. “Does that mean Mommy and Daddy play something too?” 

“Yeah, we do. That’s one of the reasons why Mommy and Daddy have this cafe here, see?” He gestured to the inside of our home with a flourish, a cheerful grin on his face. “Music helps everyone relax, whether it’s ninja or our neighbors. We make the world a little brighter, you know?” 

His response really triggered some old nostalgia for me and I couldn’t help but grin happily back. “Yeah!” It was at this point that Mom walked over, carefully sitting down next to Dad and smiling at me. 

“Tomoko-chan, by chance, do you want to play the piano with us? You can help out more at home if you want to.” 

I didn’t even have to think over my answer. Because when you think about it, as a kid in a world filled with ninjas, what was the better choice?

Going to the Academy to learn how to kill? Or learning more about the piano, my old friend from my previous life, and using that skill to help out in the cafe — reaching out to more people?

Considering my athletic skill in my past life, where the most I did was bike 40 miles, and the distinct lack of chakra in the air, to me, anyways, it wasn’t even a question at that point. 

“I wanna play, Mommy!”


	5. God Knows

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anything or anybody except Tomoko. All the songs and references mentioned in this fanfiction belong to their proper owners and are used simply for entertainment purposes. Please enjoy! I recommend marasy8’s piano rendition of God Knows from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya for this chapter.

_ Chapter 4: God Knows _

It was after my little proclamation that Mom and Dad started bringing me into the family business. Turns out that the ‘family love for music’ was something that started with my new parents, and when they decided to settle down with Dad retiring from the ninja business, they started the cafe as a way of steady income and for Dad himself to still connect with his old shinobi friends. 

Apparently my little stunt really surprised them only because it was so sudden. I mean, think about it — a 3 year old girl who had just seen the piano, playing it like a natural? I wouldn’t blame them for being shocked. 

…Anyway.

When starting to work in the cafe with Mom and Dad, I really started to take note of my surroundings as well as my new appearance. Unlike my past life with her long brown hair and black-rimmed glasses, my new self had a short, black bob cut of hair, somewhat curled at the ends with a white ribbon forming a small bow on one strand on the right side of my face. I now had blue eyes (that didn’t require glasses this time — hooray), reflecting that of Mom. For a growing kid, I was rather on the short side, really only reaching the middle of Mom’s thighs. Then again, I was on 3 and about to go on 4 soon, so it was a little early to call the height game.

The name of my family’s cafe turned out to be Nagareboshi Cafe, meaning ‘Shooting Star’. Mom and Dad tell me it’s a pun on ‘Hoshino’, the family surname, as well as ‘star field’ and the ninja shuriken. 

…Well, at least it works! I don’t have any other ideas.

It took about a year and a half for Mom and Dad to properly teach me everything there was in the cafe. And oh boy, there was  _ a lot _ to learn. Even though I had some work experience serving others’ needs in my previous life, apparently Mom and Dad had come up with many rules in order to respect the needs of the customer (which included both ninja and civilians). There were just so many that I can’t list them all, but here’s a few examples:

  * Always ask for a customer’s preferred pronoun and how they would like to be called _before_ serving them.
  * If they request to eat in private, leave a privacy seal behind and drop off the food as quickly and politely as possible.
  * _Do not_ provide a drunk person more sake/alcohol if they already look sick.
  * Never back-talk a customer.



Honestly, it was a lot to remember, but I really had the past 18 years of my old life to thank, since it really showed me a lot of social cues that I needed to remember too. 

…And apparently I had to wear a uniform too. Initially Mom thought of dressing me up like a cute little maid with black dress and lacy hat, but that was the day I saw Dad go into ‘Protective Daddy’ mode and turn her down before she could even say anything. 

...We ended up setting on a kimono dress with the color scheme of a Sylveon (white with pink lace and hints of blue ribbon). ...Don’t laugh - I’ve been a fan of the Eevee evolution line since forever and I’m not going to stop now!

…Er, ahem. Excuse me. 

By the time I had gotten the customer service aspect down, then it was actually going out and helping around the cafe. At first, Mom and Dad had me carry small things, whether it were glasses of water or small desserts. But as time went on, leading up to my 5th birthday, I was able to carry whole trays of beverages and food, sometimes carrying the occasional heavy tray. 

It was when I had started fully playing the piano for entertainment aspects that I received my first customer of sorts. 

See, the grand piano kinda sat in the center of the cafe on its own small stage, and aside from the piano bench that I usually occupied, Mom and Dad quickly came up with the ‘Song Request’ system. Basically, song requests worked like this: normally, I would play a casual song to start off the day, and as time would go on, if someone wanted a song to be played, they would pull up a chair to sit near me. Once my current song would end, I would take their request and play without any extra charge. 

It was my 2nd day officially taking up the role as Nagareboshi’s pianist that I met Minato Namikaze.

What was most notable about him was his blonde hair and bright blue eyes. I couldn’t immediately tell if he was a ninja or not because he wore very civilian-like clothes, with a blue sweatshirt and cargo pants. At the time, I had just finished a small solo of the Pokemon Center theme before I heard his voice. 

“Excuse me, are you the person playing such wonderful music?” I almost hit a wrong key for a moment before stopping myself, swerving my head to look up. A gentle, almost timid grin greeted me as he smiled, blond spiked strands of hair framing his face. 

“H-Hai, I am,” I stuttered. When did he get there? I didn’t even hear him sit down…

As if noticing my surprise, Minato-san sheepishly scratched his cheek. “I’m really sorry, but from what the owners were saying, I thought you were older.” 

Huh, haven’t heard that in a while. 

“I-It’s fine, sir. What would you like me to play?” At my question, he leaned back into his chair and shrugged. 

“How about you play something that reflects your image of me?” I blinked in confusion, staring at him for a moment. This was another first — no one really was this vague when making song requests. 

“Uh…sir, I just met you. Are you sure you want that kind of song?” The blond man simply chuckled, reaching over to lightly ruffle my hair, fingers carefully avoiding my white ribbon. Apparently this man was doing a lot of firsts for me since no one really ruffled my hair like that except Dad! 

…Hopefully, he won’t be angry.

“It’s fine — surprise me, ok?” I just glanced at him for a moment before shrugging my shoulders and playing the song I had in mind. Originally a rock concert dedicated to a stoic man from a rather weird girl, I couldn’t help but get immersed in the memory.

It was only later when the man left that the horror slowly sunk in.

I had just played a song for. Freaking. Minato. Namikaze. The goddamn Yellow Flash and Future Fourth Hokage.

I really got myself in the Narutoverse deep at this point — and only some God Knows how things will turn out. 


	6. Red Like Roses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anything or anyone in this story with the exception of Tomoko, her family, and the concept of the Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Theishter-Anime on Piano’s cover of Red Like Roses from RWBY. For the Pokémon Center theme also mentioned in this, I would point you towards Hypochondriac Piano's cover of the theme, since I found it to be the most soothing and complementary to the theme of Nagareboshi Cafe. Please enjoy!
> 
> Note: There is a bit of emotional angst in here courtesy of reincarnation keeping the teenage emotions around. So if you don’t like it, proceed with caution.

_ Chapter 5: Red Like Roses _

It was around the middle of the year, a couple days after I had played  _ God Knows _ for Minato-san, when I finally realized the gravity of my situation. A 5 year old civilian girl was actively serving ninja in a cafe  _ during _ a time leading up to the Third Great Shinobi War. Playing piano to boot. 

_ Was I doing enough? _

Now, you’re probably thinking that’s a really weird question to ask yourself. But back in my old life, I watched Naruto. Not as much as some of my other friends who were really into the series, but I knew enough to basically figure out the first dominoes that fell leading to the events of Naruto’s life. And a part of me knew that my first customer being Minato, Naruto’s father and the future Fourth Hokage, wasn’t just coincidence. 

But what was I supposed to do? I don’t have the ability to sense chakra - hell, I don’t even know if I can use it in the first place! 

And I already know that a ninja life is not worth it for me personally. 

Killing and acting essentially like a tool was _not_ what I had in mind when restarting my life from scratch.

But seeing the show and the manga really made me worried.

I had yet to know anybody involved in the whole plot shenanigans aside from Minato-san, but I knew that by meeting him, the others would soon follow. And even as a casual fan, a part of me knew that I didn’t want them to have that sort of pain.

_ Minato-san, Kushina-san, Obito, Rin, Kakashi... _

Would I be able to help them avoid the many misfortunes the original canon had? Even if I wasn’t a ninja? Even if all I could do was sit by the sidelines and provide (at best) therapy with music?

It was these thoughts in mind that for the first time in a few years (not counting my baby tantrums) that I actively cried one night. I didn’t even mean to cry in the first place, but yet the tears kept coming out in the most ugly way possible. Attempting to stifle the noise with the sleeves of my pajamas didn’t work either, as the sobs just kept coming out.

“…Tomoko-chan?” 

I sniffled. “…M-Mommy?” Immediately, gentle hands pulled me into a warm embrace, the sound of Mom’s heartbeat beginning to reach my ears. Fingers soothingly ran through my hair, brushing out any light tangles in the strands. It reminded me of my old mom. 

“Tomoko-chan, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Despite Mom’s kind voice, tears kept coming out as I continued to sniffle. 

“M-Mommy…” My heart constricted onto itself. “A-Am I doing enough to help you?” 

To my surprise, Mom instantly pulled away to look at me in the eye, bright cerulean orbs lit with worry and sympathy. “Why are you asking that, Tomoko-chan? You’re doing more than enough to help Mommy and Daddy.” 

“B-But…” More sniffling on my part. “I-It doesn’t _feel_ like that, Mommy. People still are sad when coming in.” 

Even as a 5 year old girl, my teenage mind knew better. I’d seen the sullen, sometimes depressed faces of customers, a majority being ninja, coming in after a long day. Even when playing the piano, the smiles they would give me were so  _ sad _ … 

Minato-san himself wasn’t exempt from this, not saying a word except a soft ‘Thank you’ after my performance a few days ago. 

Recognition showed in Mom’s familiar blue eyes before she smiled softly, a tint of sadness in it. “Neh, Tomoko-chan,” a hand gently wiped at my red eyes and cheeks, taking any stray tears with it. “Why do you think Mommy wanted to start this cafe with Daddy?”

Through the blurry vision caused by the waterfall of tears, I blinked slowly. “…To make people happy?”

Mom smiled again, lightly shaking her head. “That’s one reason, but that wasn’t what I was exactly thinking when I got together with your father, Tomoko-chan.” 

_ Huh? _

Mom shifted a little to let me sit fully in her lap, tucking my head under her chin while still brushing through my hair with a hand. “You see, Daddy used to be a ninja too. Like Minato-san and the other customers we have. But even back then, Mommy could tell that he didn’t like it. If anything, Daddy just wanted to be himself and not have to hurt anyone anymore.”

“…So then, what did you do, Mommy?” One thought was left unsaid as the snot and tears started to dry up at this point. 

_ How did Daddy retire and start living with you when most ninja never retire and only do so if they’re dead? _

I looked up at her, squirming a little in her lap.   

Mom simply sighed, her chest rumbling a little from her deep exhale. “It’s a long story, little one, but Mommy was somehow able to convince Daddy and Lord Hokage to let Daddy rest.” My eyes bulged at the thought of it.

_ Mommy — standing up to the Professor and Third Hokage?! _

Apparently Mom noticed my shocked expression and chuckled softly, pulling me closer to herself in a warm embrace. “Mommy still can’t believe it either, you know? Daddy was a full-time ninja, and yet Lord Hokage knew he had to go and let him go. What the Academy and a lot of ninja don’t tell you is that the life of a shinobi is hard, Tomoko-chan.” Mom’s voice softened considerably, tone very similar to those days when she would sing to me during my toddler tantrums. “It was a lot harder being a civilian and loving a person like Daddy. That’s why Nagareboshi Cafe is here in the first place.” Her hand gently gestured to the inside of our home, her gaze at one point landing on the grand piano. “Nagareboshi is here to make the lives of ninja and civilians a bit more bearable. Even if you’re not a shinobi, you will face conflict and strife at some point in your life. We provide comfort and a helping hand when people need it.” To my surprise, Mom looked down at me and gently flicked my nose. 

_ Ow. _ “So, don’t think you’re not doing enough Tomoko-chan. Your piano is a lot more heavenly than you think, ok?”

I blinked quickly, looking into Mom’s eyes for a moment. Even though the speech was a bit sugar-coated and cheesy, I could tell she was being completely serious. For once, I decided not to think on it too much and just smiled clumsily, eyes wet a little. “Ok.”

_ I’ll trust you. _

* * *

 

My second customer turned out to be Kushina Uzumaki. 

Considering that my first was her blond boyfriend, I wasn’t that surprised. It actually started out like any other day, where I played the Pokemon Center theme just to warm up and wake everyone up in the morning. The cafe then went onto its usual business, with Mom ushering in new customers and Dad handling the bar. Hired help ranging from fellow neighbors to kind adults and teenagers ran around the place serving food. 

I’ll probably go into the hired help’s story another time. 

But it was around noon when I had just finished a small solo of Aerith’s theme from Final Fantasy that I saw them. Initially, I had only noticed the tufts of spiky blond hair signifying the appearance of the Yellow Flash in the doorway, but then all I saw was red.

“OHMYGOSH, YOU'RE SO CUTE!” A large tackle-hug accompanied the happy shout, and amidst the lack of air I was apparently getting, I couldn’t help but notice my feet dangling from the ground, missing the pedals of the grand piano, and my arms being surprisingly limp. 

“...Uh, Kushina-san, you’re choking my daughter.” Mom deadpanned. 

_ Stars…? _ Immediately, I was dropped back onto the ground in somewhat of a tired heap as a loud gasp sounded.  _ Why me? And Leo said I hugged too tightly... _

“I-I’m sorry, Hikari-chan! I-I didn’t know it was your daughter playing the piano!” 

“Oh really?” Mom sounded really monotone just now. “Shouldn’t the black hair be obvious?” 

“GACK!” Amidst all the noise, I was still trying to regain my bearings as a warm hand pressed against my back, rubbing it soothingly.

“Are you okay, Tomoko-chan?” The new voice made me blink slowly and look up at the speaker.

“…You remembered my name?”

Minato-san had a sheepish expression on his face, clumsy smile complementing it while he lifted me up by the torso to place me back onto the piano bench. “Why wouldn’t I? Your parents really talked fondly about you, and I really loved the song you played for me the last time I was here.”

_ Lub-dub, lub-dub _ . A small blush crossed my face. 

_ So, he really did remember? _

Despite my awe-filled gaze, Minato-san continued to babble a little. “But then I realized that I didn’t give you my name yet and kindaleftKushinabehindandshereallywantedtoseeyouandgetoneofyoursongs,so-”

“—Minato,”  _ Dad’s here! _ “Deep breaths, man, and one word at a time. You’re confusing my little girl.” I was too surprised to properly retort back at him.

_ Hey! I may be 5 here, but I’m still 18 inside! _ Outwardly, I just smiled sheepishly.  _ Then again, I don’t want to pour reincarnation BS down their ears. _

For once, the Yellow Flash looked really troubled before coughing into his fist and straightening himself. Gently grabbing Kushina by the hand, he sat her into the unoccupied chair next to me before smiling. “I was wondering if you could take my girlfriend’s request for a song, Tomoko-chan.”

I didn’t even hesitate on the big smile I sent the two back. 

“Of course! One small concert for you, coming up right now!”

The following music piece really did remind me of what I was doing. Even though it was originally a piece introducing a red-hooded girl dancing in rose petals fighting monsters of the dark, it showed me that I didn’t have to be a ninja. Based on Minato and Kushina-san’s beaming grins at each other, I knew what I wanted to do.

I could still be myself, playing the piano as much as I want, and could still help people.

Hopefully that would be enough. 


	7. This Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I own nothing except Tomoko, her family, and the concept of Nagareboshi Cafe. 
> 
> Note that the new kimono dress Tomoko wears here is something akin to a winter outfit and is also from Darling Army under the title of “Ruby and Black Hooded Cosplay Kimono Dress”. Just length the skirt to go past the knees, add black stockings and boots with red laces, and downsize the outfit to fit a 5 year old, and there you go! Please check Darling Army out for yourself — everything looks lovely! 
> 
> For this chapter, the song I would recommend would be Animenz Piano Sheets’ cover of This Game from No Game No Life. The opening sequence was one of the many highlights of the show for me, so I wanted to honor that here. Please enjoy! :)

_ Chapter 6: This Game _

My third customer was Kakashi Hatake. And honestly, if I didn’t know any better, I would have pushed off the occasion for being the usual ‘piano request to celebrate something’. 

Not that I minded though — no, no — honestly, playing a song for someone in honor of some kind of celebration always puts a smile on my face. But this little event was different.

It was about a month or two after my first performance for Kushina-san. Since the air was starting to turn cold with the passing of autumn, Mom and Dad had recently given me a new kimono dress to wear while at the piano. It actually resembled Ruby Rose’s original outfit from RWBY, with an entirely black jacket and obi complemented by red knee-length skirt, hoodie, and lace trimmed sleeves. Black stockings and boots accompanied by red shoelaces replaced my old white stockings and pink flats. Heck, even my white hair ribbon went red for the sake of keeping warm!  

Honestly, I felt a bit like a cosplayer — and strangely, I liked it. Then again, I never got the chance to cosplay in my past life and now I could easily do it without anybody judging me! Hooray!

Thank you, Mom and Dad.

…Anyway. 

It was around noon when I first saw them come in. The first thing I noticed was the bright silver hair glinting in the sunlight. To my surprise, the silver came from two heads, one the height of an adult and the other a centimeter taller than me. At least, I think. 

_ The White Fang? _

I rubbed my eyes with a hand before blinking to readjust my vision. The figures were a bit clearer now, clearly showing an adult and a boy about my age. 

_ Wait… _

The two walked up to me with the man lighting pushing the boy to sit down in the chair next to me. Just by looking at the two up close, I knew that it was the Hatake father-son duo— the silver hair was kinda a huge giveaway. Surprisingly, Kakashi resembled a cherry with a silver stem with his embarrassed face while Sakumo-san grinned cheerfully at me, hands on his son’s shoulders. “So, are you the one who takes song requests?” 

I blinked for a moment, stunned. 

_ Cute father-son scene! KYA~! _

_ …Dealing with emotional difficulties…Rebooting in 3...2...1…  _

“U-Uh, excuse me?” The sudden voice made me jump a little and almost hit a stray key, flushing red. 

“I-I’m sorry about that! Y-yeah, that’s me. What would you like me to play?” Sakumo-san blinked again before grinning once more, lightly nudging Kakashi in the chair next to me. 

“Just something to celebrate my son’s graduation from the Academy!” Sheesh, I could hear the love in Sakumo-san’s voice. Even if I didn’t have a grasp on chakra, I could swear that I saw sparkles in the background. _Hopefully_ I was over-exaggerating things in my head. 

…Please. 

But even then, I could tell Sakumo-san really did adore his son and I had to mentally push away some…ahem,  _ disturbing _ thoughts to concentrate on what he was saying.  _ Hopefully things won’t end as badly as they did before.  _ “Kakashi’s only 5, yet he was able to graduate from the Academy early!” 

At this, the aforementioned new Genin facepalmed, fingers lightly marking his new Konoha headband while his ears turned red. “…Dad, enough. Please.”

“E-eh? Why not, Kakashi? It’s a big day for you — the day you graduate from a student to become a full-time ninja!” Oh my gosh, was the White Fang actually  _ whining _ like an adorable, clumsy dork? “Of course I want to celebrate it with you here, with such lovely music!”  

Oh dear, now he was grinning at  _ me _ . I think I’m starting to understand how Kakashi feels, and  _ I was the one _ who was originally a fan of the silver-haired ninja when he was a Jonin! 

…Whether it was father or son didn’t matter at all to me. Don’t question me on this.

_ Why does it seem like all Hatakes have the ability to act like adorable dogs and put on some of the best puppy eyes?! _

I flushed, voice coming out squeaky and somewhat high-pitched. “Th-Thank you so much, sir. But what kind of song would you and your son want?” 

Sakumo-san blinked again before grinning happily. 

_ Oh my god, I think these Hatakes will be the death of me one day from fluff. So cute….! _

“Whatever you think fits, alright?” It was another vague request, but I forced myself to take a deep breath before facing the familiar black and white keys, closing my eyes in concentration.

“Alright then — one celebratory song coming up.” Despite my initial emotional turmoil, I was able to pick out a song immediately, playing the tale of two siblings stranded in their ideal world, working to become rulers. It was a rather upbeat song, but a part of me played it hoping things for these two would be better. 

_ Whoever’s up there, please let these two have happiness at least. Sakumo-san doesn’t deserve to die alone the way he did. Kakashi doesn’t deserve to lose his father and loved ones the way he did.  _

With each new note, I internally prayed. 

_ Please — let these two smile for as long as they can! _

It was only a 5 minute melody, but with my praying and the slight soreness in my hands from having played so much, it felt like an eternity to me. Opening my eyes, I turned my head only to see both Sakumo-san and Kakashi looking at me with some awe. If anything, I could’ve swore they were staring at me a  _ lot _ more intently than they were before. 

“U-Um…h-h-how was that?” 

_ …Ugh, awful way to cut through the tension _ . Sakumo and Kakashi both blinked before looking at one another and sharing a look. It almost appeared to be a staring contest of wills from my corner of the group. After a moment, Kakashi visibly sighed before turning to me, hints of pink on his cheeks peeking from his black mask.

“…It was good. Thanks.” 

It felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders and I couldn’t help the beaming smile I sent back towards the new Genin. For some reason though, Kakashi didn’t want to meet my eyes, preferring to look in another direction. Despite this, I couldn’t help myself. 

I put my hand in front of his vision, offering it for a handshake while giggling. “I’m Hoshino Tomoko, pianist of Nagareboshi Cafe. What’s your name?”

Kakashi looked back at me in slight surprise, glancing at my outstretched hand for a moment before returning the gesture, putting his hand in mine to shake. “…Hatake Kakashi. Nice to meet you.”

Judging from the happy gazes of Sakumo-san as well as Mom and Dad, I had the feeling it was the start of a great friendship.


	8. D-Ranks & Getting to Know One Another

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anything except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. For this chapter, I would recommend SheNoob087’s Synthesia piano cover of RWBY’s From Shadows. And as a small note, for the work kimono Tomoko’s mom, Hikari, wears in this chapter, please refer to Kome of the Pokemon Kimono Sisters from the Johto saga of the anime as reference. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 7: D-Ranks & Getting to Know One Another_

The next time I saw Kakashi was during a D-Rank mission. Now you're probably wondering: "How did I get into a D-Rank mission when I'm not a ninja?"

Well, to put it lightly, the whole thing happened because of a ' _slight'_ accident in the kitchen at Nagareboshi. Apparently, while Dad was in there helping prep bentos for Mom to serve to some of our regulars, a new staff member ended up tripping on _something_ (that which I don't know, since Mom and Dad didn't disclose much) and ended up spilling all the bentos Dad was working on and breaking some of the kitchen piping — making the kitchen a complete _mess_. And I mean _mess_ since food, hot water, and broken pieces of tile and piping were scattered everywhere.

Now if I was still in my old life, I would have closed the entire scene with 'anime physics' — but that didn't change the fact that some of Nagareboshi's kitchen pipes and tiling were completely destroyed. By the time Mom and I had ran in to check on the picture, Dad was completely livid and cursing out the staff member in question. It was the first time I had actually seen Dad angry, and since it was so uncharacteristic of the cheerful Dad I always knew, I kinda had to run out of the picture and let Mom handle the mess.

…You're free to call me a coward, but I'm just saying - I don't like it when Mom and Dad are angry, whether in this life or in my previous one! My old dad's yelling was scary enough, but Dad here could've been a towering devil if I didn't know any better (his old ninja career probably helped with that though…)!

Honestly, this was all I heard of the rant that staff member got before I ran out:

**"You asshole! That was more than a few thousand ryo you freaking messed up there! Do you even know how much — ?!"**

Since this was in the middle of the day, we ended up having to close to the cafe early with a sour note since that staff member was immediately fired. I honestly felt bad for that person since it was apparently only their first week, but by the dawn of evening, unfortunately, Dad had apparently caught a fever as a result of the whole mess and I didn't have time to worry. It wasn't too hot of a fever, but it was enough to make Dad bedridden for most of the evening leading into the next morning, and with the mess still in the kitchen, Mom decided to make a D-Rank mission out of it. Dad was almost always the person to go to when this kind of stuff happened in the cafe due to his 'retired ninja' status, but with his sick status, Mom had decided to go to Lord Hokage and request other ninja help.

Since it was still early morning when Mom put out the request, I was just dressed in the Sylveon kimono dress, pink lace and all, stocking the bar and relocating some food into the storage room when I saw them.

Initially, from the bright sunlight filling the doorway, I only got a glimpse of two silhouettes, one the height of an adult and the other about a centimeter taller than me. I didn't think much on it, brushing the two off as customers coming into the cafe early to see what was going on until I heard the voices.

"Hikari-san, are you here? We're the ninja that came for your D-Rank mission?" I blinked, walking around the counter to stand near the doorway.

_Is that who I think it is?_

Spiky blond hair greeted me first. "M-Minato-san? And—" The soft silver spikes were a huge giveaway and I couldn't help but grin and run up to the pair, waving happily. "Kakashi-kun! Hey!" The 5-year old Genin blinked back at me, bored face changing into that of surprise and recognition.

"…Tomoko? The D-Rank mission was from you?" Kakashi apparently seemed to be in disbelief while Minato-san smiled gently, hand lightly landing on my head to ruffle my hair as a greeting.

I just grinned again. _He used my name — hooray!_ "Well, yeah! My mom was the one who asked though…" Kakashi blinked before taking his hands out of his pant pockets, apparently looking a little uncomfortable with the warm smile I was giving him.

At this point, Mom took the chance to walk out from the back with a graceful smile, bowing a little towards our new guests. For once, she looked more like a business owner than my mom, tucking her black hair into a bun and wearing a professional blue kimono patterned with bubbles, complemented with a red and orange obi. "Hello, shinobi-san. Thanks for taking my request." Straightening her back, her smile turned a little sheepish. "Lord Hokage should have already told you what you would be doing, right?"

Minato-san simply shrugged. "Hokage-sama said it would be construction work and fixing the pipes, but I'm guessing it's a bit more than that, huh?" Mom visibly grimaced at his words, motioning to us to follow her with a hand.

Once we got into the kitchen, I could easily see Minato-san _and_ Kakashi wince.

"I-I'm sorry about this…" I added in meekly. Despite the efforts Mom and I both put in trying to clean up the place, the mess from yesterday was simply far too much. Scraps of broken piping were still lying around on the floor with some pipes still leaking water, ruining some of the clean tiles and making the whole kitchen look like a tornado went through it.

"I was hoping you two could help with reinstalling the pipes and cleaning up the tiles so we could redo them…" Mom trailed off, easily noticing the two ninja's concerned looks.

Minato just sighed lightly before smiling sheepishly at Mom, a hand rubbing the back of his head. "We'll do our best, ma'am. In the meantime, could you show me where the piping first breaks off?" At that moment, he turned to Kakashi, the Genin standing a little straighter than usual next to me. "While I'm doing that, Kakashi, go along with Tomoko-chan to help her set up around here."

"Alright, sensei," he put in firmly. I couldn't help but smile cheerfully.

Mom turned to me with a concerned gaze for a moment. "Tomoko-chan, don't trouble Kakashi-kun too much, okay?" Inwardly, I giggled. No matter what life I was in, Moms were always Moms in worrying about their kids. It felt nice being tended to like this for a bit. It reminded me of my old mom.

 _'Be Vy, be careful out there!'_ _would be something Mom back then would say, huh?_

"Don't worry, Mom~! Kakashi-kun and I will be fine, right?" The Genin next to me simply blinked before turning away somewhat and nodding quietly. I could physically feel my shoulders deflate while I pouted a little.

… _Does he just not like me or something? Or does he just not want to talk?_

A soft hand patted my head, and I couldn't help but look up and into Mom's brilliant blue eyes. "Alright, Tomoko-chan, just be safe, okay?"

"Okay." I murmured a bit more quietly. Mom smiled gently before pulling me into a warm hug. I kinda wish it could last a bit longer, but she pulled away after just a few seconds before lightly pushing me towards Kakashi's direction. Apparently in the heat of the family moment, he was already at the kitchen doorway, looking back at me in slight impatience.

 _He just really wants to get this done, doesn't he?_ With a shrug, I ended up walking up to the ninja's side again before lightly grabbing his hand. _Hopefully he doesn't mind this little bit of physical contact._ If Kakashi minded it or not, it didn't really show through his masked face and I ended up having to pull him through the hallway to walk back into the cafe center. It kinda made a weird image - I mean, a civilian girl physically pulling a ninja around by the hand? I know Rin in the old canon did this, but she was a ninja and Kakashi's teammate…

Anyway.

"So what do you need me to do?" Kakashi asked me, glancing at me slightly. I blinked, mentally tallying my usual routine in my head while letting go of his hand for a moment to think.

I counted off my fingers. "Well, normally there's cleaning the tables, setting up the bar over there with any shot glasses or wine cups, washing dishes, sweeping the front yard, restocking drinks, napkins, and snacks from the storage room, setting up the display case in the front of the store, um…" My voice cracked a little from trailing off.

_God darn it, cat got my thought._

Kakashi visibly sweatdropped, voice dry. "You don't have to list everything, Tomoko. Just tell me one thing to do and I'll do it."

I just glanced at him, sheepish.

"I-I'm just used to cleaning the piano and helping out Mom and Dad, so this is my first time having to allocate tasks to someone else…" My shoulders dropped a little. "I'm sorry, Kakashi-kun…" He just shrugged, looking around the cafe really quickly.

"It's fine, but where is your Dad by the way?" Kakashi asked.

_Ugh, that's another thing to worry about. I'm honestly just surprised Kakashi-kun isn't treating this whole thing as a nuisance. Then again, didn't he see almost everyone as annoyances? So then why is he apparently so nice to me?_

I just tossed the thoughts away before responding. "…Sick with a fever. He's actually upstairs, resting up." I honestly felt really bad about the whole thing - Dad was just doing his work like usual, and yet someone had to mess it up and get him sick to boot. If not for Mom having donned her professional uniform to talk to Minato-san, I suspected that she would have been by his side all day.

I wanted to help him too…!

Oh well. We had work to do. I sighed before looking at Kakashi with a sheepish smile. "Is it okay if you could help me with cleaning the front of Nagareboshi then?" He just shrugged his shoulders, looking towards the side before nodding. I just handed him a duster.

"Alright then — lead the way." Soon enough, we got into a working pace, where I was sweeping away any dust and litter sitting at the front of the cafe while Kakashi was crouching on top of a ladder, lightly dusting off the large 'Nagareboshi Cafe' sign with one hand. It was quiet between the two of us with the occasional 'fwish' of the broom before I decided to talk.

"So, Kakashi-kun?" He glanced down at me from the top of the ladder, grunting a little in acknowledgement. "Do you need any help up there?"

"Don't worry about me — I'm fine." He turned back to the sign in front of him, giving it one last look over before standing up and jumping off the ladder to land in front of me, still holding the duster I gave him. "Is there anything else you need me to do?"

I thought about it for a moment, hand on my chin. Nothing really came to mind since Mom handled some of the small tasks already before the ninja came. All that really was left was…

"I think I have something. Think you could check over the grand piano with me?" The silver-haired ninja blinked for a moment in slight surprise before nodding. After we had put away the ladder and other cleaning supplies, Kakashi had gently sat down in the chair next to me while I pushed away the piano cover to check over the keys.

"So, what exactly are we checking the piano for?" At Kakashi's dry tone, I couldn't help but look at him with a sheepish smile.

"Well, I was actually hoping to play a new song for you and get your opinion on it, Kakashi-kun." For some reason, my heart was beating a little faster than normal while I met his gray eyes. "B-By chance, is that okay?"

He blinked again before shrugging, mouth set in a thin line through his mask. "I don't mind. Go ahead."

_Permission granted! Tomoko has now leveled up to Acquaintance Level!_

I couldn't help but beam at him from my position at the piano bench. "Thank you Kakashi-kun."

_One new song coming up!_

I don't know if it was because I was happy at playing the piano again for him or just because Kakashi was being apparently nice to me, but my hands seemed to just fly at the black and white keys, playing the melody of a cat-eared girl fighting off robots and racism. Honestly, it was my first time playing this piece, and I hoped Kakashi was at least enjoying it and that I was doing the original song justice.

_From Shadows, huh? Seems to really fit a ninja._

Once the final key was pressed and over with, I turned in my seat a little to look at him. Again, the small spark of awe from before was in Kakashi's silver eyes, and a small, almost unnoticeable smile was on his face.

"Neh, Kakashi-kun?" Immediately, the ninja seemed to break out of whatever trance he was in to properly face me with a neutral gaze. "You're always welcome here at Nagareboshi Cafe, okay? If you want a song to be played, I'll always be here to play it for you because you're my friend, alright?"

It needed to be said at least. The next few years would be really difficult, and honestly, I was hoping to be close enough to him to provide some kind of comfort.

Being a ninja meant dedicating everything to the village — even if it meant death.

I just wanted to let Kakashi know that someone was here for him when everyone else didn't notice. Hopefully, my piano playing could provide some form of comfort to him during those times.

 _Hopefully no one dies this time_.

Kakashi seemed to be in shock at my words though, silver eyes wide, and with his prolonged silence, I couldn't help but stammer. "I-I mean, I always thought we were friends after you came in that one time with your dad andsinceyoucameandhelpedoutatNagareboshi, Ithought-"

"Tomoko," I clammed up at the sound of my name. To my surprise, Kakashi looked to the side blushing a little. "It's fine. I'll take you up on that offer sometime."

I blinked. "S-So wait — we're friends?" Kakashi continued to look away, a small frown now present to match the light pink on his face.

"Y-yeah." A huge grin adorned my face.

_Level Up! Tomoko is now at Friendship Level!_

"Kakashi-kun, can I hug you right now?" Immediately, the silver-haired Genin turned to look at me with a growing look of horror.

"W-What?! W-Wait a second—" I didn't even wait for a response, jumping a bit from the piano bench to wrap my arms around his neck. "H-Hey, Tomoko! Get off, please!" I ended up giggling quite a bit, hugging the twitching Hatake a bit tighter.

I finally made a friend. And knowing me, he had to get used to my hugs at one point!


	9. Chunin Exams & a Clumsy Uchiha

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody mentioned in this fanfiction except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is the piece titled All of Me from John Schmidt of the Piano Guys. They're actually a YouTube group of classical music artists that I've really loved listening to recently. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 8: Chunin Exams & a Clumsy Uchiha_

It was around 2 weeks after my first hug to Kakashi that he told me that Minato-san had recommended him for the Chunin Exams. By then, we had established a routine of sorts, where he would visit Nagareboshi at least once a day if he could, whether after a mission or training, to order his usual meal of miso soup with eggplant before sitting down next to me for a song request. With the many times he came specifically to me for a song, I think Mom and Dad considered him a regular by that point. Sakumo-san sometimes visited too — it just wasn't as often.

And Kakashi finally started getting used to my hugs! …I think. He's still a bit stiff when I hug him and honestly, after the first time, the following conversation ensued and it was _awkward_.

* * *

"…Tomoko, can you please get off me now?"

"…You really don't like hugs, do you, Kakashi-kun?"

He deadpanned a dry, "Gee, how could you tell?"

"You're stiff as a board even when I let go of you. But just note, since you're my friend, I want you to be aware that I am a huggy person, so expect at least one or two every time I see you."

"…Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"..."

"..."

 _I think we just established a silent conversation via eye contact. Don't know how I feel about that_.

"…Just no tackle hugs like this time, okay? I don't want to lose my life."

"Hugs don't kill you, Kakashi-kun."

"…You get the idea."

"I don't put _that_ much force in!"

His only response was an equally deadpan, "…I seriously beg to differ."

* * *

If I didn't see him like the friend he is, I probably would've been offended. But honestly, it's Kakashi — a socially awkward ninja that's apparently really good at his career, from what I remember from canon.

I just hope my influence makes him a little more open to people, myself included.

But honestly, hearing about the Chunin Exams wasn't something I was expecting today. It was supposed to be a normal day at Nagareboshi, with the usual song requests and seeing the regulars, Kakashi included! Not a time to start worrying about my friend possibly dying of all things!

Not to mention, _why_ was he telling me, a civilian girl, about this? Wasn't there risk of a security breach or something? …Maybe I should start asking for privacy seals to put on the piano if someone wants to talk to me personally unless Mom and Dad put one down already.

"…You're really serious?" I couldn't help but turn in my piano bench to look at Kakashi directly, ignoring the tempting shine of the black and white keys near my hands. "Minato-san thinks you're ready?"

The silver-haired Genin simply pulled out his registration paper from his pocket as an answer, holding it up in front of my eyes. "Yeah, so you'll probably not see me for the next week or so. Minato-sensei might come by to tell you my progress though, so you don't have to worry about me too much."

In response, I just frowned. He was really taking the exam situation a little too lightly for my liking. "Isn't the Chunin Exams _really_ infamous for the possibility of _getting killed_ while taking it? And, no offense intended, Kakashi-kun, but how long have you been a Genin for?"

Kakashi simply frowned through his black mask, stashing his registration paper back into his short pockets before crossing his arms across his chest. "About a year, but I've already been on missions with Minato-sensei and trained with Dad. Don't worry, Tomoko, I'll be fine."

That actually didn't reassure me. I knew that Minato-san and Kakashi's father, Sakumo, were more than capable ninja, but recommending a 6-year old to take a possibly fatal promotion exam? Honestly, I would prefer _standardized testing_ if these _death match-ups_ are the main choice for shinobi promotion — and that's saying something.

Kakashi apparently noticed my concern and simply sighed, uncrossing his arms. "You really don't have to worry, Tomoko — Minato-sensei says it's fine and it should be fine."

Even then, the worrying frown was still on my face, and I ended up scooting a little closer towards the Genin. "It just feels really early, Kakashi-kun. I mean, no offense to anybody, but why would they need you to become Chunin now? You're only 6…"

_Is Konoha really trying to set Kakashi up for early death or is war really coming so close to the point where they need to bring children into the fight?_

A hand reached over to pat my head.

 _Huh?_ I blinked slowly. _Is Kakashi the one doing that?_

It surprisingly felt nice coming from the ninja.

"I'll be fine, Tomoko." Kakashi seemed to smile gently through his mask, hand still patting my head. "Honestly, Dad's been talking about how there's something going on between the Five Great Shinobi Countries, and that's why the Chunin Exams this year are specifically Konoha-local — so I shouldn't have to deal with too much stuff. Quit wasting your time worrying about me."

Huh, for such a blunt response, that was surprisingly nice. I guess you really do learn something every day.

In the end, I ended up conceding mental defeat with a small smile, looking up into his silver eyes. _Kakashi was able to make it through the entirety of the Naruto storyline before - might as well trust him._ "Just promise me you'll come back safe and sound, okay? I'll play a full concert for you when you get back, Chunin promotion or not." Maybe it was my own will or my childish instincts, but I ended up offering my pinky to him. _Hopefully he wouldn't turn it down._

Honestly, it was a little awkward sitting there offering a pinky to the ninja that decided to go silent for a few minutes. In the end, Kakashi sighed again (a common occurrence now apparently) before taking his hand off my head to link his pinky with mine. "I promise, Tomoko. Just make sure it's a good concert."

I just grinned happily and hummed. "Of course! But I'm going to hug you now, okay?"

Kakashi visibly grimaced, panicked lines clearly showing on his face. "W-Wait, now?!"

"Yes now! It's a hug for good luck!"

"I don't need good luck!"

"Too bad — I've giving it anyway!"

I kinda ended up pouncing on him to wrap my arms around his neck. _And_ we ended up crashing to the floor of the stage with Kakashi on the bottom of the hug pile.

 _Whoops._ I'll probably have to apologize in a couple of seconds since I did kinda violate his 'no tackle-hug' rule. But he was snuggly and _warm_ so I'll just bask in this for a little while longer.

_One day, I won't be able to knock him down like this._

"…Why me?" The Genin grumbled dryly.

* * *

The next day, it turns out that my fourth customer was Obito Uchiha. It was actually an early morning when it happened. I was just dressed in the usual RWBY kimono dress and red hair ribbon, donning the red hoodie for warmth to help deal with sweeping the front of Nagareboshi Cafe when he crashed into me.

…Yes, I'm being serious here. Obito Uchiha is apparently the most clumsy and heartfelt out of most stoic Uchiha.

Sure, I've served them with music before, but they never really said anything. Heck, I don't think I heard anything except a 'thank you'!

But then again, I've never really talked to Obito until it happened. Apparently, he was running late in getting to the Ninja Academy, and thought of taking a shortcut via the shopping district.

I just really don't appreciate his not seeing me and therefore making our first meeting be a 'Crash into Hello.' Then again, I didn't see him coming either until he knocked me down onto the pavement.

"ACK!"

"EEK!"

Next thing I knew, I got an eyeful of orange goggles before the big blur on top of me quickly scrambled to stand back up. "I-I'm sorry! Are you okay?" A shaky hand was offered to me, and I couldn't help but follow the blue sleeve up the arm to look into somewhat teary black eyes.

Black eyes. Future Sharingan-user. An Uchiha?

"I-I'm okay, but what about you?" I blinked before taking his hand and lifting myself up, lightly dusting off my skirt before grabbing the fallen broom. _Thank goodness I wore the black this time — any dirt and I think Mom would kill me._

Immediately, the boy laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his spiky black head with one hand. "I-I'm fine, no worries!" He gave me a fierce thumbs-up, and I could swear a sparkle shined from his white teeth.

_Goofy smile, orange goggles, blue jacket, and…apparent clumsiness? Yep, it's Obito._

I frowned. "You're bleeding a bit from your forehead though." Even as a civilian, the small trickle of red peeking from the fringe of hair meeting his forehead was obvious.

He blinked before briefly touching the spot with a finger, bringing his hand down to look at it. "Oh — I'll be okay, though! I'm the man who's going to become Hokage!" He cocked his goggles at me with a happy grin. "This little blood doesn't scare me at all!"

"Okay…?" _Here he is — Naruto Incarnation Number 1…_

It took a small tumbleweed passing for something to happen.

"AH!" The immediate loud cry from the boy in front of me made me wince. That was a bit too loud. "I'm already late as is — sorry about that!" Before I could even say anything in response, he was already running off into the distance, glancing back at me for a moment. "I'll come back to apologize later!"

By the time I couldn't see his silhouette anymore in the distance, I was all by myself in front of Nagareboshi, roughed off and quite honestly confused.

… _I didn't even ask for his name, didn't I?_

In the end, near sundown, he did end up coming back. Honestly, with the thinning stream of customers coming into the cafe, the small boyish figure in the doorway was rather obvious. Thing is, this time, he was accompanied by a girl about my height, wearing a brown vest and donning a brown bob cut (similar to mine, in fact) and purple markings on her cheeks.

_Don't tell me that's who I think it is._

The two quickly walked over before pulling up two chairs to sit next to me. The black and brown heads of hair immediately confirmed my suspicions. _Obito and Rin?_

Obito was the first to speak. "H-Hey, sorry about bumping into you earlier. I was running late to the Academy and thought of taking a shortcut and didn't see you. C-Can you forgive me?" To my shock, he bowed his head. _Bowed his head!_

No ninja — even if it's an Academy student — should have to bow their head to a civilian girl!

I ended up stuttering. "O-Of _course_ I forgive you! There's no need to bow your head, so please stop doing that!" It felt _weird_ being on the receiving end of that notion. Obito was going to be a ninja heading out to kill people — he really shouldn't be doing something like that! Or feel even the _need_ to do that!

_Hopefully he doesn't turn into Tobi this lifetime though._

Rin ended up piping in. "Obito, you're making her uncomfortable — you can stop now." Immediately, Obito lifted up his head to look me in the eye, and I couldn't help but notice how deep they were for just being a black color. Were eyes always windows to the soul like this?

For once, there was an awkward silence. It felt like a pin could drop between the three of us before I spoke. "…Obito's your name?" He nodded furiously, black strands hitting his cheeks.

"Y-Yeah, Uchiha Obito! I'm going to be the man that'll be the future Hokage!" _Yep, it's Obito_.

Next to him, Rin smiled, straightening her back to show off gentle whites with soft brown eyes to match. "I'm Nohara Rin." _And here's Rin, the great catalyst of the whole story — I think. This is becoming a big introduction session_.

Despite this, I ended up giggling to myself, smiling back towards the two. "I'm Hoshino Tomoko, nice to meet you. How do you two feel about a song to make your time?"

"A song?" The two Academy students looked confused, glancing at one another before facing me again. I nodded. "What kind of song?"

"Anything you want, as long as you're okay with piano~! Consider this a small service for taking the time to talk to me." I found myself winking towards the two with a big grin on my face. They deserved that much at least for all the hell that would be coming up in the next few years.

_Hopefully, Kannabi Bridge won't fall down the way it did in canon and jumpstart the plot with it._

_Kannabi Bridge is falling down~_

_Falling down~_

_Falling down — okay, that just sounds weird._

Obito and Rin blinked before looking at each other and starting a small, hushed conversation. After a few moments, Rin looked back at me with a curious smile. "Try surprising us then, please." I swear I was grinning so hard to the point of my lips becoming numb.

"One piano surprise, coming up then!" I didn't even think of an anime/video game song when touching the piano keys for my new audience. All I thought about was a song I heard rather recently in my old life — an original done by an amazing group of people.

_I really hope I'm doing the Piano Guys justice. Wish they were here to talk about it._

Hopefully my music was doing something. It certainly seemed to enchant Obito and Rin though, and since Kakashi, Kushina-san, Minato-san, and Sakumo-san all seemed to appreciate it already — maybe I was making a difference. I really was praying that it would be enough for the upcoming war.


	10. All Our Days

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anyone else except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Jess A.'s piano rendition of All Our Days from RWBY. It's not actually played in this chapter, but plays a central theme of this chapter. Another song alternative would be the Piano Guys's rendition of Just the Way You Are by Bruno Mars. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 9: All Our Days_

It was about a week after I had met Obito and Rin that Minato-san visited Nagareboshi again. It wasn't a sudden thing — if anything, the meeting was so casual I just didn't see it coming.

It was just the early morning, where Mom, Dad, and I were all fully dressed in work uniforms (me being in the Sylveon kimono dress again) to clean up the cafe before the work day officially started. I was carefully wiping down the piano itself, taking extra care towards the inner piano strings and gears so that the music would still be in tune when I could faintly feel a small tap on my right shoulder.

_Tap tap._

It didn't seem like much at the time, so I ignored it, continuing to clean the giant instrument. The thing is, the tapping didn't stop and instead persisted on my other shoulder. By then, it had already caught my attention, and I turned around only to get a flash of yellow.

… _Eh?_

Minato-san's soft smile greeted me as his hand went up to my head, lightly ruffling my hair. For once, Minato-san really looked like the Jounin he was supposed to be, donning the usual Konoha green flak jacket over his usual clothes with his Konoha headband tied proudly across his forehead, blue ribbon standing out from his blonde hair. Honestly, it was both fitting and surprising considering that the only times I'd seen him was when he was dressed casually. "Hello, Tomoko-chan, are you free right now?"

"U-Uh…" _Oh great, I'm stuttering._ "H-hi, Minato-san…and um…yes?" My response came out rather high-pitched and squeaky. Maybe it's the shock of seeing him as the ninja he is that's making me this way.

To my surprise, Minato-san laughed. It wasn't supposed to be anything outstanding, but coming from such a powerful ninja really made me jump. It sounded so _happy,_ so _alive._

It reminded me of my old Dad. That powerful man who ran away at 18 in order to escape being drafted into war. The man who taught me almost everything I knew in my old life. That man whom I looked up to as a father and as a person. And yet here Minato-san was, laughing and reminding me of what I lost in that collision.

I loved Dad — and the others I left behind — and the feelings of longing and sadness were so much to where I had to physically push away the memories in my mind in order to concentrate on what Minato-san was saying.

… _Looks like I haven't gotten over my past life as much as I thought._

Once Minato-san got over his laughing fit, his hand landed on my head again, lightly ruffling my hair while kneeling down to look at me in the eye. I couldn't help but notice how his eyes were so blue — almost like Mom's. "Neh, Tomoko-chan, how do you feel about seeing Kakashi again?"

_Wait, what?_

My answer was immediate. "I would love to see him."

Honestly, when thinking on it, Nagareboshi felt a bit empty without the masked ninja. He had always visited me to ask for a song almost every day, and I just got so used to his presence that not seeing him made me feel a bit lonely. Sure, we really didn't talk a lot during those moments and let the music do the talking instead, but I felt a connection with him. Even when taking my past life into consideration, Kakashi was always someone I sympathized with as a person, whether as Tomoko or as my past self. And you know - being a 6 year old without her best friend was just sad.

I just wanted to see him again.

…And maybe tackle-hug him again — only if he would let me. Then again, knowing Kakashi, he wouldn't.

…Darn his anti-socialness!

Again, Minato-san laughed, this time a bit louder than before, holding his stomach with one arm before looking up at me again.

_Did he know something that I didn't?_

"Actually, right now is the Chunin Exam Finals, and I was thinking of taking you to see Kakashi fight. How do you feel about that?"

Before I had the chance to answer, Dad popped up behind Minato-san's shoulder, glowering in his green work kimono. "What is this I'm hearing, Minato? Do you actually plan on taking _my_ little girl to see _death matches_?"

 _Oh no._ Dad was in 'Protective Daddy' mode again, and based on the dark aura surrounding him, Minato-san seemed to realize it too, fumbling. "Oh, Judai! Uh, well, I was just thinking my student needed some motivation—"

"At the cost of possibly traumatizing Tomoko?" Dad snapped, arms crossed about his chest. "You _know_ why I've been trying to keep my family out of the ninja business Namikaze, and yet you want to take _my own daughter_ out to see ninja fight?!"

The Yellow Flash was, for once, cowering, slowly becoming smaller and smaller with every second.

Whoa. Time for damage control.

"Daddy, it's okay!" I piped in before the dark aura got too big, barely preventing Shinobi Mind War 1. My voice turned more high-pitched with each breath. Guess that's a benefit of being a kid again. "I'll just be watching from the sidelines and I want to see Kakashi-kun again!"

The aura disappeared immediately, with Dad striding past Minato-san to gently pick me up and cradle me in the crook of his arm. His originally fierce brown eyes were now calmed down to a more tame hazel chocolate hue, looking at me in concern. "Are you sure, Tomoko-chan?"

I nodded, mouth in a firm line to reassure him. Despite my effort, the worried lines on his face only deepened, his stubble twitching a little on his chin. "There will be a lot of blood and people will be hurt — Kakashi-kun included, sweetie. Are you _really_ sure you want to see that?"

"Yeah! I just want to see Kakashi-kun again and support him, Daddy!" At my immediate, heartfelt response, Dad just sighed before cuddling me, stubble scratching my forehead while grumbling in my hair.

 _Ack — feels weird_.

"…When did my little girl start belonging to a boy?" He mumbled dryly.

I honestly had no idea how to respond to that, squirming a little in his hold. What was he trying to insinuate? We were only 6…

Minato-san gently sighed next to me. "Well, I think Tomoko-chan just gave us her opinion, so will you be okay letting her go for a bit Judai?" Dad mumbled something in my hair again, arms tightening around me. "Judai?" Another grumble. "Oi. Judai?"

"GODDAMMIT, MINATO, I GET THE POINT ALREADY!" I found myself being thrust into Minato-san's arms, ears ringing somewhat from Dad's sudden yell.

 _Ow_. _I'm blaming you, Minato-san, if I go deaf._

"Just make sure to bring her back before sundown, protect her from any stray jutsu or kunai, and keep an eye on her at. All. Times." Near the end of it, Dad was verbally growling and brandishing a kunai. "Are we _clear_?" Even though I was far away enough to not worry about it, the glint of black metal looked really terrifying, especially when in Dad's hands.

Meep.

"C-Crystal. I-I got it, Judai. Thanks." Minato-san choked out, voice cracking a little.

I just whimpered, whipping up any courage I had left to look at Dad in the eye. "Daddy, that yell hurt a bit."

Immediately, the Dad I knew was back, lightly patting my head with an apologetic smile while putting away the kunai to…well, wherever it came from.

"I'm sorry about that, sweetie. I just had to chew out some _old_ trash over here." I swear I could see Minato-san get verbally stabbed with each comment Dad made, shrinking a little. "Just be safe and come home soon, okay?"

I sheepishly smiled and reached out to hold his hand. It was honestly a lot bigger than mine and despite the distance, I could distinctly feel the rough calluses on his palms.

 _Oh well. Have to handle cheering up Minato-san later_.

"Okay, Daddy. You make sure to help Mommy out at Nagareboshi. I love you."

At my last words, he immediately brightened, leaning over to plant a loving kiss on my forehead. "I love you too, sweetie. I'll see you soon."

It was about this time that Minato-san decided to hightail it out of the cafe, probably to avoid more of Dad's wrath, quickly nodding to him while walking out with me still in the crook of his arms. Once the warm sunlight began to hit my face, Minato-san turned to look at me, shifting his hold on me a little so that I could look at him face-to-face. Even in the early morning, I could still see how some beads of sweat were still present on his cheeks — probably as an effect of Dad's 'Protective' mode from earlier. "Are you fine being held like this, Tomoko-chan, or do you prefer piggyback?"

In response, I just shrugged. "Whatever floats your boat, Minato-san."

Immediately I found myself regretting that remark because the next thing I knew, I saw a flash of yellow before my stomach somewhat gave out, my eyes noticing the environment being completely different. Turns out the Jounin ended up using the attack that made his namesake of the Yellow Flash. I had to literally clutch onto Minato-san for dear life to properly get a look at everything, wrapping my small arms around his neck.

Instead of the shopping district we started out in, I saw gray walls with a long row of light green spectator stands of sorts, really only consisting of a rectangular platform with metal fencing walling it off. One set of stairs on each side of the room led down to the main floor where most of the fighting took place. One wall was specifically notable for having a large statue of two ninja hands forming a hand-sign, with one of the wall panels behind it specifically being an electronic screen. There were other ninja around us, ranging from Minato-san's height to what looked to be young teenagers. Everyone was wearing a Leaf headband though, with varying ribbon colors of green, red, and blue.

Even though the surroundings looked a bit cleaner than I remembered, I still knew where we were.

_This is the Tower from the Forest of Death where Naruto's Preliminary Round took place. So, even back during Kakashi's time, they used this arena often._

Apparently I was too engaged in properly looking around to hear Minato-san's voice. "—Tomoko-chan?" The worried tone immediately snapped me out of it, and I turned my head only to see worried blue orbs. "Was the teleportation too fast for you?"

_Um…my stomach feels like it's giving out, but doing great! Don't think the Hiraishin is really a good thing to use on a civilian._

That wasn't actually a good response, even in my head, so I just sugar-coated it. "I-I'm okay, Minato-san. But you can put me down now…"

The Jonin simply smiled before shaking his head, hefting me up a little more so that my head could barely reach his height. "No can do, Tomoko-chan. You won't be able to see from here and besides, Judai — I mean — your dad told me to keep a good eye on you." I didn't miss the small shudder that went through his frame at the last remark and simply pouted.

_Guess Dad was a good enough ninja to make even the Yellow Flash terrified. Good to know._

"…Tomoko?" The dry, boyish voice made me blink and look downwards. Silver eyes and a black mask greeted me back, a frown clearly seen through the material.

"…Kakashi-kun?" I rubbed my eyes and blinked again. Sure enough, my best friend was right in front of me, standing up to about Minato-san's waist and looking up at me with disbelief. Unlike the last time I had seen him, Kakashi was donning a completely new outfit consisting of a long-sleeved grey jersey with a brown waist-cape hiding the weapon pouches hanging off his usual black ninja pants. Even from the height I was at, courtesy of Minato-san, I could see the kunai pouch strapped to his left leg as well as some slight scratches and flecks of blood on the few blotches of skin I could see on the Genin. The appearance of the silver haired ninja made me squirm a lot more than before, and it was just enough for the blond Jounin to gently let me down for me to face him properly. "Hey."

"Hey yourself," the Genin grumbled, hands thrust into his pant pockets. "How did you end up getting here, Tomoko?"

In response, I just pointed at his blond sensei, and Minato-san simply shrugged. Kakashi's face fell in response, a frown palpable through his mask. "…Minato-sensei."

"Well, I thought you might need some motivation, Kakashi~!" Despite Minato-san's cheerful tone, the frown on Kakashi's face simply increased, looking more like an exasperated expression.

"Minato-sensei, did that really mean bringing Tomoko here?" He simply raised a hand to his face, shaking his head dryly. "I thought Judai-san wouldn't appreciate it."

I pretended not to notice Minato-san's instinctive flinch at the sound of my dad's name and blinked.

"Well, Daddy let me go so here I am?" I added my two cents rather nervously. Kakashi simply gave me a long stare through the one silver eye peeking through his hand before sighing.

… _Why is it that Kakashi seems to sigh mainly around me?_

In the end, I just pouted and crossed my arms to look away from the Genin. "And I just wanted to see you…"

"I told you that I would be back in a week or two, didn't I?" Kakashi deadpanned.

Honestly, I wasn't buying any of that shit and just gave him a questioning stare back.

"..."

"..."

"…Well, I guess the two of you have now learned the language of 'awkward but meaningful silence.' Congratulations." Minato-san clapped his hands sarcastically.

"... Isn't it a 'staring, contemplative silence,' Minato-san?" I asked him, breaking eye contact with my infuriating best friend.

"You get the idea, Tomoko." Minato-san droned tonelessly. From his expression, it really looked like he was just done with the entire day already. Considering he dropped the honorific to my name and all.

"… _Why_ were you two even trying to name that in the first place?" Kakashi mumbled.

I just shrugged. "Well, we weren't really talking about anything else now, right? And not to mention, I would _really_ like to hug you right now, but I'm guessing you're not going to touch that with a 10 meter pole until after the Exams are over, aren't you, Kakashi-kun?"

"…You know me _so_ well Tomoko, how could you guess?" I didn't even need to look at the ninja to hear the blatant sarcasm in his normally dry voice.

"Body language says a _lot_ of things, Kakashi-kun," I just wiggled a finger at him. "And right now, yours is clearly saying, 'Don't you dare touch me until I can at least shower and prepare for any kind of concussion your hugs can give.'"

Kakashi dragged his hand across his face before giving me a long stare, silver eyes narrowed. "I don't think I sound like that, Tomoko."

Again, I shrugged my shoulders, rolling my eyes a little. "Well, you tell me, Kakashi-kun—because your tense shoulders and bloodstains kinda say otherwise."

"…You were worried about me," Kakashi stated mildly, taking a step closer.

 _Well no jack shit, you reckless ninja! I_ _ **know**_ _of some of the things your future self does, and honestly, you would give me_ _ **far**_ _too many heart attacks. 'Worried' is an_ _ **understatement**_ _._

Outside of my inner monologuing, I let out a deep sigh, sounding very Kakashi-like for a second. Guess he was rubbing off on me more than I thought. "…It was obvious, huh?"

Soon enough, my best friend was close enough to be at hugs-length, mouth set in a thin line through his mask. "I told you not to worry, didn't I?"

By then, the child in me was causing my eyes to blur from some tears, and it took all I had to keep my voice steady. "…You did."

_Pinch~_

"AH!" I jumped, looking around suddenly before my gaze landed onto Kakashi's figure.

_Did he just pinch my cheeks?!_

Apparently my reaction really threw my friend into a fumble because he started to laugh.

Kakashi. The most stoic ninja that I had ever known. Was laughing.

_HUH?!_

"What was that for~?!" My voice came out rather high-pitched as a result, my hand landing over the now offended cheek. Despite my little reaction, Kakashi continued to laugh heartily, arms across his stomach with tears in his eyes. "Kakashi-kun~!" I found myself protesting, cheeks now bright red.

"Y-You…" Kakashi kept laughing, wheezing from the amount of mirth escaping his masked mouth. "You just looked so _weird_ just now!" If it wasn't Kakashi, then I would've been offended. Instead, I gaped, blinking rapidly.

It took about a few seconds from my best friend to calm down, and by then, Kakashi had on a 'closed eye smile,' hand reaching out to pat my head. Eh? "Don't worry, Tomoko. I said I would be fine before, and I'm standing right before you, right?" Still in shock, I nodded numbly. "So—"

" _Will Hatake Kakashi come down for the next round?"_

The announcer's voice made me jump, but unsurprisingly, Kakashi was unfazed, glancing to the side in the direction of the arena before sighing and looking at me in the eye. From the closeness, I could make out the soft pupils of his silver eyes and feel the cool metal of his Konoha headband against my forehead.

"Quit being a dolt and just believe in me, okay?" He huffed gently, lightly bumping my head with his headband. "I'll always protect my friends — that's my ninja way. And how can I do that when I don't come back?"

 _Lub-dub_.

Immediately, I felt really warm, and quite honestly relieved.

_How could I not trust him when he said it all like that?_

I sighed again before gently smiling at him. "Alright then, Kakashi-kun. Kick their butts and come back safely, okay?"

Kakashi simply smirked through his mask before pinching my cheek again, standing up straight to face the arena. "That's a given already." I could only watch him jump onto the handrail and leap down to the battlefield below, and just shook my head.

 _Kakashi'll come back. I know he will_. With that in mind, I took a deep breath.

"GO KICK THEIR BUTTS, KAKASHI-KUN!"


	11. Results & Hugs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anyone or anything except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Kyle Landry's 2015 version of Dearly Beloved from Kingdom Hearts. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 10: Results & Tackle-Hugs_

Well, even though I had experience watching animated fights back in my old life, actually _watching_ a fight in real life was completely different from the hand-drawn/computer-generated counterparts. Even if I was in the Naruto-verse and all.

…Adding in ninja physics, stamina, and speed, it was kinda hard just watching the whole thing with civilian eyes. It was one of those times where I wished I had access to chakra, but considering that the air was as stale as ever with tension as an extra ingredient - turns out I'm still a non-chakra user and a civilian.

…Sigh. Oh well.

Once Kakashi jumped down into the arena, he faced off with a ninja I didn't recognize from the canon verse of _Naruto_. If anything, he could've been a nameless mook that might have died in the future of canon.

I think his name was…um…what was it again?

" _The final battle between Hatake Kakashi and Motome Musashi will now begin!"_

Oh yeah — Musashi-san! I think he's a 13 year old Genin that I saw around Nagareboshi a couple times when still in training with Mom and Dad. I probably didn't think on him a lot since he only really bought take-out and left really quickly without even taking a song request.

…Then again, he looked almost like any other civilian, with brown hair, eyes, and mostly brown shinobi gear. If anything, he probably would have blended into a garden a lot better. 'Request Arms,' huh? It's still kinda symbolic considering he made it to the end of the Chunin Exams.

…Still, a 13 year old going against a 6 year old? There was at least a 12 inch height difference there! Then again, knowing Kakashi, it might be a quick match.

Not that it would stop me from cheering at the top of my lungs, waving from the spectator stands.

…Hopefully, Kakashi wouldn't take it too badly.

"YOU CAN DO IT, KAKASHI-KUN! BREAK A LEG!"

In response, my best friend lightly glanced in my direction before facing his opponent and taking a fighting stance.

And wait. Was it just me, or were his ears _pink?_

"…Tomoko-chan, please tell me you don't mean that literally." I looked to the side only to notice how sheepish and out of place Minato-san looked, blue eyes glinting nervously.

"Um…not really?" My hesitant, high-pitched response only made Minato-san sweat, and he gently put a palm to his face. "…By chance, was it something I said?"

Minato-san groaned. "…Just don't say those things around your dad, okay?"

I just blinked and nodded without questioning it. _Is Dad really that scary or is there something else going on?_

For some reason, I couldn't help but think of when Nora offered to break Cardin's legs that one time in RWBY. Was it that?

Soon enough, Minato-san's eyes narrowed to a serious expression, and he lightly nudged me in the shoulder. "Besides, the match is starting soon."

True to his words, the loud announcement of " _BEGIN!"_ ran through the entire arena, and I had to quickly run over to the handrail in order to look down at the scene. Honestly, the entire battle played out much like an intense action scene from a movie, where Kakashi and Musashi-san were exchanging taijutsu blows. Unfortunately, I could only really follow the first few kicks and punches before they started speeding up, and by then, it was really a series of silver and brown blurs going at it.

Even the techniques weren't exempt from this since I could only make out Musashi-san attempting to use some Fire Style Techniques, including Flame Bullet and Fireball Jutsus, but it either missed Kakashi entirely or it collided with a hastily created Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall.

In the end, the match ended with a surprise attack on Kakashi's part, where after a Fire Jutsu exploded in the middle of the arena, Kakashi took the chance to hide underground and then jump Musashi-san with an Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique to knock him out - ironically, the same move his future self used on Sasuke, another Fire Style user.

Once the announcer shouted out " _WINNER: HATAKE KAKASHI!"_ , I didn't even think of anything else.

Once my best friend walked back up the stairs to meet Minato-san and I at the spectator stands, I ended up running towards him as fast as I could, just to face him properly. In person, face-to-face, that kind of thing. And to check on his well-being.

Thankfully, even after such an intense battle like that, with fire being in _everybody's_ faces, Kakashi was completely unscathed save for a small nick in his jersey from a stray kunai. I held back every thought of hugging him for the moment just to smile up at him.

"You did it, Kakashi-kun."

In response, he lightly smiled back through his mask. "Was there any doubt, Tomoko?"

I winced, looking to the side in a bit of shame. He caught me. "…Well, I was a _bit_ worried, so that might count."

"…You really need to work on that worrywart tendency of yours."

At the dry remark, I just sighed, puffing my cheeks.

"I won't deny that, but I just _really_ want to hug you right now. Do I get permission, oh great Chunin?"

Kakashi gave me a half-lidded stare in response, his expression literally screaming ' _What the hell._ '

I couldn't help the thought. _Are my hugs really that bad?_

Still, Kakashi sighed. "They haven't even announced who's been promoted to Chunin yet, Tomoko."

I glanced at him before shrugging. Whatever. It was still a victory, and victories called for _something._ "Eh, don't care — I'm just going to hug you now, alright?"

"…Wait, _what_ —"

I just wrapped my arms around his torso just to shut him up, resting my head against the side of his neck.

…Hey, don't push me on this. It's been a week, and when a girl needs to hug her best friend, she's gotta do it! Doesn't matter if it's a tackle or a normal hug — either works!

And sometimes, you need to have physical affection to show that you care. At least, that's what I think.

"…Tomoko?" Apparently Kakashi was expecting the tackle hug option and was quite stiff in response — heck, even his voice sounded a bit different than usual!

_Is there something wrong with him? Or does he really think I just tackle-hug people all the time?_

In the end, I just ignored it. I ignored the dirty state of his shinobi gear and how it was somewhat dirtying my kimono dress, the various other ninja standing around us spectating in a mixture of surprise and shock, and even the bewildered gaze of Minato-san.

Kakashi was right here, safe and sound, and I just wanted to hug him. He was snuggly, warm, and strangely smelled of pine trees. Kakashi felt familiar, gentle, and quite honestly, safe to me. I couldn't help but breathe in his scent from his shoulder, tightening my hug around him while burying my face into his shirt. "…It's just good to have you back, Kakashi-kun."

To my surprise, hesitant arms went across my back to return the hug as a soft breath blew by my ear. I could feel Kakashi's muscles slowly relax under my hands while the hold on me tightened. "…I'm glad to _be_ back."

In response, I just smiled against his shoulder before pulling away somewhat to stare into his silver eyes. Warm, familiar silver eyes. "Welcome back, Kakashi-kun."

He blinked before giving me a soft eye smile, hand landing on the top of my head. "I'm back, Tomoko."

In the background, Minato-san blinked. "Um…I hate to interrupt you two, but we need to head out of the tower now since it's sunset. Mind if you could let go?"

…Why is the Yellow Flash almost always late at this kind of stuff?

* * *

"So, you're a Chunin now, huh?" I couldn't help but look over the new Konoha flak jacket Kakashi was donning over his black jersey from my position at the piano bench, taking in the various pockets and contours.

In response, the new Chunin simply shrugged in his chair. "Yeah, but it doesn't really feel all that outstanding."

I just giggled into my kimono sleeve. For once, Kakashi looked to be at a loss for what he was supposed to do with the whole new promotion thing, poking parts of the jacket every now and then with a finger. "You don't have to be all that humble about it. It's a new promotion — of course it's amazing! You just made a new milestone in your life!"

"Tomoko, you really don't have to make a big deal out of it." Kakashi sighed, lightly slouching into his chair, arms crossed across his chest. "It was just expected, that's all."

 _Well, here's the Prodigy talking_. In response, I just frowned and lightly poked the ninja's cheek through his mask. Have to curb this before Team Minato comes around. I could only hope my words stuck. "Kakashi-kun, not everything goes according to expectations, okay? Don't go thinking that all the time with ninja work."

The Chunin simply gave me a half-lidded stare, pushing away my hand. "Now you're starting to sound like Dad."

I just shrugged. "Eh, I've been a worrywart, so why not add parent to the mix?"

"…Now that just sounds weird, Tomoko. You're not my mom." Kakashi said dryly.

I just tilted my head when looking at him, grinning teasingly. "But I'm your best friend and I said I would play a whole concert for you when you became Chunin, Kakashi-kun. Just let me spoil you a little before you head out and leave me by my lonesome."

The Chunin's silver eyes simply narrowed at me in response. "...Tomoko."

"Yes, Kakashi-kun?" I hummed back, voice a bit more high-pitched than usual.

"..."

I ended up humming. "...?"

"..."

"…These silences are getting way too common between us. Just say something — anything!"

Kakashi gave me the same narrowed stare. "…Anything."

I just pouted at him.

" _Ha ha ha_ , Kakashi-kun, my stomach is certainly giving out from laughter right now."

"…Just decide on something to play already."

"Alrighty, mister Chunin, one concert coming up~!"

"…Don't call me 'mister Chunin.'"

The melody easily flowed out from underneath my fingers. Honestly for such an occasion, I had to go back to my roots, playing the honest tale of a boy wielding a giant Key to go around saving the various worlds. I knew that Kakashi wouldn't have to deal with something of _that_ giant scale right now, but if we were going by canon, he would be in a lot of hurt.

_I just hope he does realize that there are a lot of people who consider him one of their Dearly Beloved._

And to be honest, I just missed my best friend, sassiness and sarcasm included. Might as well go back to how we first started, not talking except through music. I just hope he was enjoying the moment as much as I was.


	12. Tomoko's Various Customers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I own nothing except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The main theme for this chapter is sillyrama’s recommendation of PianoNest’s cover of Ariana Grande’s Moonlight. 
> 
> On the other hand, there are quite a few other songs mentioned in this chapter, and those include marasy8’s cover of God Knows from Chapter 4, Justin Boyd’s cover of One Summer’s Day from Spirited Away, All of Me from the Piano Guys, and Animenz Piano Sheet’s cover of Brave Heart from Digimon Adventure. I would recommend playing these songs during the moments where they’re mentioned in the chapter (since Tomoko does play all these pieces at one point) and then play Moonlight for the duration of the story. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 11: Tomoko’s Various Customers_

It was around a couple days after Kakashi’s Chunin promotion that I started taking note of the regulars that usually flocked to me. Whether or not I had ‘main character syndrome,’ apparently, I’m just taking from my memories of TV Tropes, a lot of ninja from the Canon verse continued to visit me for song requests, Kakashi included.

I’m honestly not sure whether or not to be surprised or grateful that I know so many future influential people.

There’s Minato-san, the Yellow Flash and apparent former teammate of Dad’s, usually coming by in the early mornings with Kakashi if he can, requesting _God Knows_ or some other fast-paced tune to wake up.

* * *

“Hello, Tomoko-chan…” A yawn broke through his voice before he continued, “—Think I could get the normal wake up call?”

“Peaceful or really turbulent?”

“Eh, either works. Just surprise me.”

* * *

 …Honestly, I’m surprised that the fastest man alive has so much trouble trying to get up early in the mornings if not for Kushina-san.

Oh! Speaking of Kushina-san, she’s been visiting a lot too! If not with Minato-san, then she comes with Uchiha Mikoto-san. Who if I didn’t know any better, could pass off as Kushina-san’s twin sister if not for the jet black hair and eyes showing her Uchiha status. They usually frequent the same table in the center of Nagareboshi close to the piano to converse with one another. I never really tried to overhear one of their conversations due to privacy sakes and the piano just drowning everything else out, but they almost always look in my direction at one point though. I don’t even _need_ to look away from the keys to know that they’re staring at me.

* * *

“Tomoko-chan~! I’m back, _ttebane_!”

I found myself blinking before turning my head to see familiar red hair and a new face. “Ah, hello again, Kushina-san!”

I ended up pausing once the new black eyes turned to look at me. Er.

“…Um, and you are, ma’am?”

The new customer just smiled at me in a ‘Yamato Nadeshiko’-like manner. Was that a good way of describing her? I wasn’t sure. Still, she spoke softly, a huge contrast to her more extroverted Uzumaki friend. “Hello, Tomoko-chan, I’m Uchiha Mikoto, it’s nice to meet you. Kushina has been telling me that you play wonderful piano. Is it alright if I could request a song from you?”

I tried not to blanch. _Holy crap, this is Itachi and Sasuke’s_ **_mom_ ** _!_

Outwardly, I tried not to stutter. “O-Of course it’s fine, um…Uchiha-san? Or what would you prefer me to call you?”

The Uchiha woman just giggled into her hand before smiling at me. “Mikoto-san is fine, dear. Just try to surprise me like you did Kushina, okay?”

“And make it one of your best songs, Tomoko-chan! Everyone needs to hear your music, _ttebane_!”

I found myself giggling nervously. Don’t blush, don’t blush, don’t blush…! “A-Alright, Kushina-san, I get the idea. Anyway, Mikoto-san, please take a seat in the chair next to the piano. I’ll play something right away.”

* * *

…Well, at least Mikoto-san enjoyed my rendition of Spirited Away’s _One Summer Day_. I just hope I did Joe Hisaishi and Studio Ghibli justice.

…Yes, I miss my old life sometimes. I don’t think that would ever go away.

But anyways.

Another customer I’ve noticed around in Nagareboshi every once awhile is a familiar sage with spiky white hair and red lines on his face…

* * *

“Oi! Minato~! You in here?”

The Yellow Flash blanched. “J-Jiraiya-sensei?!”

“I was hoping to show you a new technique so I came looking for — Oh? Who is this young lady?”

 _Oh no. Ero-Sennin. Naruto’s future Perverted Sensei. Oh no._ I found myself blinking rapidly in disbelief before squeaking out an answer. “Um…Hoshino Tomoko, sir?”

The Toad Sage just chuckled under his breath. “Well, Tomoko-chan, I imagine that in a few years, you’ll be quite the beauty after you hit puberty~! You’re sweet enough already! Maybe in the future, you’ll be enough to warrant yourself as a character in my — GWAH!”

I nearly jumped at the sudden glint of a kunai. When did that get there?

Wait.

_Dad?_

“…Jiraiya-sama, I really don’t appreciate you trying to appraise my daughter’s growth. If you want to make such comments, please take it _outside_ Nagareboshi please.”

Jiraiya cowered and proceeded to yell out something I couldn’t make out.

In the end, I just turned to the Yellow Flash for clarification. “…Minato-san, is this normal?”

A long sigh left his mouth. “Unfortunately, Tomoko-chan, it is. Just don’t think too much on it.”

“Okay…?” 

* * *

I think Dad’s becoming _really_ protective lately though.

On another topic, Obito and Rin have been coming by a lot more often. Strangely, they seem to come by around the same time Kakashi leaves, always giving me company. Either they’re together or they come separately, and I think I’m starting to become a therapist since they always seem to talk about their days at the Academy with me….

Or am I just the main civilian friend that just became a person to vent to about shinobi and/or life problems? I know I want to help, but…

Er. How to start.

* * *

“…The Clone Jutsu is just _so_ aggravating, Tomoko-chan! No matter how many times I do it, they can’t even _stand!_ How did Bakashi make it look so easy?!”

I just chuckled slowly. Damage control, here we go. “Uh, Obito-kun, I honestly don’t know how to answer that since I can’t really access chakra, so I don’t know what that’s like.”

Obito turned pale and fumbled with his hands. “ACK! I’m sorry, Tomoko-chan!”

I tried to hide a nervous giggle. “I-It’s really fine, d-don’t worry about it, and you really don’t have to bow to me every time, Obito. We’re friends.”

“It’s just…” The Uchiha sighed, slumping in his chair near me. “That Kakashi ended up graduating early and I heard he’s already out on missions. If I want to become Hokage, then I need to work harder in order to surpass that guy!”

I tilted my head in confusion. This was new. “By chance, Obito-kun, why _do_ you want to surpass Kakashi-kun so badly?”

A fist bump in the air was my answer. “He was actually the top ninja in our Academy class before skipping grades and graduating early. I was never able to match him, even when we were fighting together. I just…” Obito took in a deep breath. “I _really_ don’t want to lose to him.”

 _Makes sense, but…_ I opened my mouth, hiding a shiver at the thought of Canon. Obito didn’t deserve his Canon fate at all. “But Obito-kun, you don’t have to always hold yourself up to Kakashi-kun’s standards. Everyone grows differently, whether as shinobi or civilian. It’s good to keep someone in mind as a goal, but if you get in a team with him, you have to put those differences aside to work together. The last thing you want is to butt heads with him while on a mission or something.”

Obito blanched again. “Eh~? I don’t even want to _think_ about being on a team with him!”

 _Ouch._ Disbelief was rolling off me in waves now. “…Obito-kun, do you really not like Kakashi-kun that much?”

Obito smiled at me wryly. “…Not really. He just seems so…” The Uchiha waved his hands in the air in an over-exaggerated manner. “Arrogant, blunt, and just an asshole!”

 _…I wonder if he realizes that he’s talking about my best friend there. Probably have to address this before it grows too much_.

Canon was a whole shitstorm _because_ no one aside from a few select people tried to address rivalries like this.

I spoke honestly. “Obito-kun, you may think that way, but it’s possible that Kakashi-kun might just act like that because he’s been around a lot of other ninja who have been a lot more skilled. His behavior towards you might just be saying you need to work quite a bit in order to earn his respect, and I don’t think he means everything he says.”

The Uchiha’s jaw dropped. “Really? Then I have to work harder to catch up to him!”

I just smiled fondly. There was that Naruto-enthusiasm I missed so much these days. “Just don’t push yourself too hard, okay? Self-care is important too. And as any ninja would say: ‘Look underneath the underneath,’ alright? Don’t just take everything at face value.”

What I got was a big thumbs up in response. The large toothy grin was just icing on the cake for me. Woo. “Got it! Thanks, Tomoko-chan — you’re always great to talk to about stuff like this!”

I couldn’t help but giggle again. “Hai hai, Obito-kun, you’re welcome. Now then, do you want another song?”

“Sure!”

* * *

I just can’t help but wonder if I’m the only person Obito and Rin talk to about this kind of stuff…

* * *

Rin fidgeted in her chair. “...Neh, Tomoko-chan?”

“Hm? What is it, Rin-chan?” I politely ignored her gestures in favor of making eye contact.

The medic blushed. “By chance, you know Kakashi really well, right?”

I tilted my head. “I do…but why?”

“W-Well, I was just wondering how he’s doing.”

 _Oh dear._ I smiled tentatively. Here was another potential bomb-shell. “Rin-chan, just note that I can’t share a lot because of customer confidentiality and shinobi privacy, and from the looks of it, most of what Kakashi-kun’s doing is his business.”

“Oh…” The medic looked down to her lap in clear disappointment.

 _Oh great, now I just feel bad._ I just sighed before smiling again. _Why is it me when it comes to egg-shell walking?_ My reply ended up being honest.“Well, he’s been telling me a lot about going on various missions, and he’s recently become a Chunin too.”

Rin perked up almost immediately. And oh gosh, she was _sparkling_. “W-wait, really?!”

“Yeah, he has. I just can’t share anymore than that, though. If you want to know more, just go to Kakashi-kun himself, okay?”

“O-Okay…”

It was well about time to change the subject. I put on my brightest smile. “In the meantime, how about we talk about how you’re doing? I can play something in the meantime and you can just talk — I’ll still listen.”

“Sure! Think you could play the song you did for Obito and I the last time we were here?”

A more sincere smile came across my face. “Of course I can.”

* * *

I really think I’m just becoming an advisor to both Obito and Rin about their problems at this point.

On the other hand, one spring day, I found two new customers, both wearing green jumpsuits and orange scarves, come into Nagareboshi one day…

* * *

A loud, booming voice cut through the silence in mere seconds.

_“Hello, wonderful citizens! Is this Nagareboshi Cafe, the place where such lovely piano music is coming from?”_

Uhhhh.

I found myself turning to the only other person next to me in confusion. “Kakashi-kun, I wasn’t the only one who heard that, right?”

My best friend just slouched in his seat, clearly unhappy. “…No, Tomoko, I heard that too.”

I jumped at the sound of the back doors swinging open with an audible slam and Mom’s sudden yell. “Yes, sir, this is Nagareboshi Cafe, and would you please use your inside voices?!”

 _…Well, there’s Mom being angry for once. It’s a nice twist to the normal routine — wait a minute_.

The original ‘ice-breaking’ voice sounded a lot more sheepish after a few seconds of silence. “I-I’m sorry, wonderful owner, I was just looking for the pianist of Nagareboshi since my son, Might Guy, was able to show his youth and graduate the Ninja Academy at 7! I was hoping to get a celebratory song to act as a monument to his success!”

There was a long pause. Then, Mom sounded significantly calmer with her next words. The pause probably helped her with that. “Oh, well, sir, that pianist is my daughter Tomoko, and she’s right over there in the center of the cafe. You don’t have to come in yelling to ask for her — she’s right in front of everyone here.”

“Oh!”

 _Well, the two Green Beasts are walking over here now…_ And he was leaning down enough to breathe _right_ in front of my face.  “Are you the pianist here in this lovely establishment, dear?”

 _A-And does he have to get_ **_close_ ** _?_

Outwardly, I was already putting on my politest smile. “I-I am, sir. What can I do for you?”

 _Now I know how Kakashi feels when facing Guy and Lee in the canon timeline — those two are already…visibly ‘interesting’ in their own ways — but_ **_these_ ** _two started it all!_

Might Dai was already grinning brighter, and gosh, he was _beaming_ like it was the fourth of July or something. Aaah. “Well, my beloved son Guy has finally graduated from the Academy today and I was hoping you could play a song to honor him!”

_Looks like Might Dai is similar to Sakumo-san when concerning their sons - they both have the same ‘sparkling, adoring father’ look when pushing them forward._

_Wait._

_…And just_ **_why_ ** _is Guy blushing?_

Sure enough, the new Green Genin just looked down, ears a little pink, before raising his head and staring back up at me with a bright grin. Was it just shyness? That was all I could think of.

Then he spoke. “H-hello! I’m Might Guy, age 7! I graduated from the Academy today! And you are?”

Involuntarily, a soft giggle left my mouth. He was definitely Guy, alright. “I’m Hoshino Tomoko, and it’s nice to meet you, Guy-kun. Your dad said you wanted a song to be played in honor of your graduation from the Academy, but what kind would you want?”

With the same grin, Guy shouted, “The most _youthful_ one you have, Tomoko-san!”

_...Well, I was expecting that kind of remark. Now what do I have in my memories that matches that—Oh!_

“Coming right up then, Guy-kun. You and your dad can take a seat at the table near the piano and just listen, okay? Mom — I mean, Hikari-san, should be coming by to take your order soon.”

Kakashi just gave me a blank stare. “…Tomoko, do you really have to?”

I shrugged at him. “Kakashi-kun, they’re customers as much as you are. So, just let me do my job and enjoy the music, okay?”

He sighed. “…Just don’t go to overboard on the volume, alright?”

I just hummed. “How long have you known me for, Kakashi-kun? 2 years should be more than enough for you to trust me on that~!”

_Besides, Brave Heart more than fits both you and Guy-kun anyway!_

* * *

Well, when looking back on it, they all enjoyed it! I was actually surprised to see Guy _not_ try to challenge Kakashi right then and there when the song ended, but considering the fact that Mom was keeping a close eye on the green duo, that might be a factor in the whole thing.

…Let’s see, who else has been coming by lately—Oh!

Sakumo-san has actually been frequenting the seat near the piano lately in the mornings, usually the times before Kakashi comes by in the afternoons, making small talk with Dad, Mom or me. Sure, he’s come by before, but he’s been silent a majority of the time.

But still. Why did he start talking now? And to me and my family of all people?

Right now, he was still _the White Fang._

* * *

“So, Tomoko-chan, how have you been doing?”

I tried not to blanch at the sudden question. “I-I’m fine, Sakumo-san, but what about you? You seem to be going out a lot more lately.”

The White Fang blinked before chuckling. “So, you’ve noticed, huh? I’m surprised that such a small civilian girl like you noticed that much about me.”

I couldn’t help but feel aghast. How humble could a man be? How gentle could a _ninja_ be? “O-of course I would! You’re one of my regulars Sakumo-san and I care about you — _of course_ I would notice!” I found myself pausing because the intense stare he was now putting on me was, to be frank, kind of uncomfortable. When did he start doing that?

I ended up ducking my head to look away, trying to preserve what little modesty I had in the face of all the embarrassment. “…Not to mention, you’re Kakashi-kun’s father, Sakumo-san. He really loves you a lot and I think as a friend, I would want to make sure you’re okay too, because whatever happens to you will affect him.”

Another chuckle. “Goodness, you’re really an interesting girl, Tomoko-chan. Thank you for the concern, but I’ll be fine.”

Um, judging by Canon? No. My disbelief came out through my voice. “…Are you sure? You’ve been looking a little more tired lately too…”

“Really, Tomoko-chan, don’t worry.” I tried not to jump at the sudden hand on my head, calloused fingers stroking my hair. “You’re as much of a worrywart as my son says you are.”

Another giggle left me as I looked up at the White Fang. “Well, I won’t deny it.”

Sakumo-san just smiled back before leaning back into his seat with a more tired stance. “... There’s just been talk about tension brewing in Iwa right now Tomoko-chan. I’m not sure if I’m allowed to tell you, but basically in a few months, I might have to head out to handle a huge scouting mission to see if the rumors are true.”

A lump found itself in my throat almost immediately.

 _Please don’t tell me that this is the unfortunate mission that led to the disgracing of the White Fang_.

“…How important is it?”

Sakumo took a deep breath. “Some of the higher-ups think it might be important enough to decide whether or not we’ll be going to another war, Tomoko-chan.”

“...!”

_No…_

The next thing I knew, Sakumo-san was waving his hands in the air, panicked expression on his face. “I-I’m sure it shouldn’t be too bad, Tomoko-chan! Really!”

“But Sakumo-san…”

The White Fang just coughed into his fist and straightened his back in a semblance of composure at my response.  “We don’t even know if this is a confirmed mission or not. So, just don’t worry about it Tomoko-chan — I’m sorry for scaring you about it. If you want, I don’t have to talk about this with you.” A sheepish laugh left him. “I just keep forgetting that you’re 7 years old and not like Kakashi in behavior.”

What, am I a _prodigy_ like him now?

…Don’t answer that.  

“I-It’s okay, Sakumo-san! Nagareboshi Cafe is originally here to give both ninja _and_ civilians respite in their lives. If it means talking with me, then it’s fine! I-I mean...” I took a deep breath. “I’m actually happy that you trust me because it shows that I’m doing my job right and helping you, Sakumo-san…”

The hand on my head slowly lifted itself off. “Tomoko-chan…”

I tried not to fumble. “S-so, don’t worry about scaring me, okay? You face a lot of scarier stuff out there in the field, and it’s good to talk about it if it gets to be too much! If I can’t handle it, then you can talk to Mommy or Daddy!”

I wasn’t expecting it. Another laugh, only louder this time, left Sakumo-san’s lips. Eh? “Goodness Tomoko-chan, you’re such an amazing girl.” The same hand landed on my head again, this time ruffling my hair. “Konoha is lucky to have you.”

I could feel heat spreading across my cheeks at the compliment. “I-I’m not sure about that…”

“How about you play me the usual cheerful classical piece then? Just to match the mood.”

“A-Alright, then!”

_Moonlight coming through!_

* * *

…Honestly, when looking back on it, I think I’ve made a lot of ripples in the canon timeline already. Every person I’ve met through the piano has always left Nagareboshi looking a little happier. Heck, even the stoic Kakashi apparently respects me — at least, I think so.

I’m just happy knowing that my life so far as Tomoko has really helped out a lot of people.

I just hope that it will help temper some of the pain coming in the near future.


	13. The First Flames of Youth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family and Nagareboshi Cafe. The kimono dress Tomoko is specifically wearing this chapter is again from Darling Army, aptly titled, "Leafeon Kimono Dress for Sarah." Just take out the hood and resize the dress to fit a 7 year old, and you're good!
> 
> The piano track for this chapter is Hypochondriac Piano's cover of The Afternoon Streets from Kingdom Hearts 2. On the other hand, please play Guy's Theme from the original Naruto soundtrack for some of the more Guy-centric parts of the chapter. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 12_ : _The First Flames of Youth_

One of the pros (and cons) of being born during the era leading up to the Third Shinobi World War was that you would be able to see the beginnings of great friendships that would continue into canon.

Kakashi and Guy's beginnings were a little more…well, _rough_ , to put it lightly. Last I checked, civilians weren't dragged into their rivalry matches, but I think the two made an exception with me…

It all started out as a normal spring morning at Nagareboshi, where I was wearing a new kimono dress resembling a Leafeon to match the season (mostly yellow with brown lacing, a leaf pattern on the skirt, and a brown obi with a leaf adorning it, complemented by white stockings and brown boots), cleaning up the piano when the two came in.

…Well, more like they _ran_ in. Woo.

"FIGHT ME!"

"I DON'T WANT TO!"

To my surprise, I quickly found myself face to face with intense black eyes and a familiar bowl cut. "…Um, what?"

The thought only registered a few seconds later.

_Did Kakashi just use me as a human shield for the future Green Beast of Konoha to look over?!_

"Oh, hello, Tomoko-san! Your beauty is as lovely as ever! As expected of one of many flowers of Konoha!" Guy yelled enthusiastically.

Oooookay.

In response, I just blinked before attempting to turn my head to look at the silver-haired Chunin behind me.

"Hello, Guy-kun, and… _why_ , Kakashi-kun?" I found myself deadpanning.

My best friend simply gave me a half-lidded, exasperated stare, hands still pushing me forward to face the green Genin. Heck, Kakashi's deadpan expression said more than enough. _Not now, talk later!_

"You're actually hiding my Eternal Rival, Tomoko-san!" Guy bellowed, and I was positive I could see _flames_ in his eyes. "Is it alright if you could let me see him?!"

… _I'm experiencing the start of the Eternal Rivalry, aren't I?_

"Um…" I looked back at Kakashi, and he immediately shook his head, silver hair whipping his face from the ferocity. _Well, this is hard_. "I-Is it alright if you could come back later Guy-kun? Um…" I ended up noticing the concerned looks of Mom and Dad from the bar side of the cafe and took advantage of their presence. "Kakashi-kun isn't ready for whatever challenges you have yet and I kinda need to…clean the cafe, so yeah…"

_God dang it — that sounded painful._

"Eh~?" Guy physically deflated, and my heart just dropped in the middle of my chest at the sight of his eyes watering a little. "B-But we've only really done one competition today and it was just rock-paper-scissors! I won't be satisfied with just that!"

Why, just, _why_ did Guy have to sound so _pitiful and adorable_ when pleading like that?!

"U-Um, then Guy-kun, what _do_ you want to do then? You and Kakashi-kun have at least 30 minutes before Nagareboshi opens, and I could possibly…host it?" My voice turned squeaky and high-pitched near the end, and I could easily see Kakashi glaring at me from the side of my vision. I couldn't help but mentally cry.

_I-I'm really sorry, Kakashi-kun! But you're the one that put me here — so, deal with it for a bit, please!_

At my rather nervous response, Guy blinked before going silent, putting a bandaged hand on his chin to think for a moment. A few seconds passed before the fire reignited in his eyes and he looked at me with a passion that, quite frankly, terrified me. "Tomoko-san, how about _you_ decide what our competition should be?!"

_Wait,_ _**what** _ _?!_

"You're the wonderful person that is going to be hosting us, so please, come up with something that will satisfy our ETERNAL RIVALRY!"

If possible, I could easily feel myself deflate.

… _Why, oh_ _ **why**_ _, do I have the feeling that it will be you two ninjas that will always put me on the spot here?!_

"Um…" I glanced at Kakashi. My best friend simply raised an eyebrow back, frowning expectantly.

I kept the thoughts to myself. _Well, I love you too, you insufferable ninja. You complete_ _ **dolt**_.

Taking a deep breath, I attempted to straighten myself before looking at Guy in the eye. "H-How about this? You and Kakashi-kun race up to the top of Hokage Monument and back…" _Might as well take inspiration from canon here_. "And when you get back to Nagareboshi, whoever hugs me and carries me the highest wins?"

You're probably wondering by now what the last point was. Honestly, it was something that I did in my past life with my original duo of friends, Josh and Leo. And yes, I mean _that_ Leo, my former loveable _asshole_ boyfriend, Leo — now please let me continue.

When we first met, I started out by hugging them both, and the 'hugging competition' was something Josh came up with. Initially, Josh wanted to make me laugh after a tough day at school and attempted to lift me up high in the air _while_ still hugging me. Leo had saw this and apparently wanted to one-up my big friend and attempted the same thing, this time carrying me by the knees to lift me up, close enough to where I might've been able to touch a low ceiling beam with an outstretched arm.

Hehe.

By then, it became an 'unspoken' bout of rivalry of sorts between the two, since they wanted to just see who was stronger and who could make me laugh more.

I still miss the two sometimes, I don't think it'll ever stop — but I'm Tomoko now. That past self of mine may still exist in memory, but she's gone now. I have to move on at one point — but at least I could still honor the memory of my old friends through this competition with new ones.

Maybe this could help.

Going back to the scene at hand, Guy blinked before a new kind of flame ignited in his eyes, this one significantly more amused and happy at the idea, giving me a thumbs up. "Alright, Tomoko-san! I will do my best to beat Kakashi and hug you as hard as I can!"

I blinked. "U-Uh, sure…"

From behind me, Kakashi was facepalming and shaking his head, now standing at full height.

"Kakashi — we will meet here in 5 minutes! Be there and face me, rival!" The Green Beast quickly ran out the cafe doors at that, yelling something along the lines of ' _Flames of Youth!_ ' in the distance. What was left in his wake was a very confused atmosphere, with Mom and Dad shaking their heads in disbelief and Kakashi just sighing behind me. I couldn't help but turn to my best friend in confusion and teasing amusement, smiling shyly.

"You really found a good rival, huh, Kakashi-kun?"

In response, Kakashi glared at me through the cracks in his hand, exasperation clearly seen in his silver eyes.

"…You owe me a good song after this, Tomoko."

_Yep, he's still angry. Joy._

I just tiptoed a little to wrap my arms around his neck in an apologetic hug. Even though there was only a few centimeters difference between us, he was getting taller. That's shinobi health for you. "I know I do, and I'm sorry, Kakashi-kun. That challenge was the only thing that came to mind."

I could feel Kakashi's chest rumble from another sigh before his arms went around my back gently, lightly patting it. "…Just try to not do that again, okay? You don't know how brutal Guy can be, Tomoko."

I couldn't help it. "You mean 'youthful,' Kakashi-kun?"

Kakashi just pushed me away a little to shake his head. "No, Tomoko. That was just horrible."

I just grinned bashfully, scratching my cheek. "Sorry."

" _OI! KAKASHI! IT'S BEEN 5 MINUTES! COME OUT HERE!"_ The loud shout made us both jump before the named ninja sighed again, hand to his face.

"Let's do this then?" I trailed off a little, taking note of my friend's upset expression.

Kakashi just groaned.

* * *

"So, Tomoko-san—"

"G-Guy-kun, you can call me Tomoko- _chan_ , we're the same age."

"Okay then, Tomoko-chan, can you please do the countdown?! I'm ready to go already!"

I couldn't help but look over the scene in disbelief, and the apparent crowd in the shopping center shared that same sentiment.

_How did I get here again?_

In the 5 minutes Guy was gone from Nagareboshi, he had drawn a large chalk line with the word 'START' in big white letters from Nagareboshi's doorstep all the way to the opposing market. Adding in Kakashi and Guy himself, kneeling like Olympic runners getting ready to race, behind said line, and the Green Genin yelling out various comments about the race to Kakashi and everyone else in the street, it made a very…'interesting' scene. I honestly felt out of place for once with my Leafeon kimono dress and the limp white flag in my hand serving as the start signal.

"…Those hugs better be good." I found myself muttering.

"Did you say something, Tomoko-chan?" At Guy's enthusiastic response, I just blinked before shaking my head rapidly, smiling nervously.

Whoops. He caught me. Almost.

"I-It's fine — don't worry, Guy-kun! Anyways…" I lifted up the flag in the air with my right hand, taking in a deep breath. In response, the two ninja tensed.

"3…" Kakashi narrowed his eyes. "2…" Guy breathed in deeply before grinning. "1… and GO!"

It was like a tornado hit the shopping center at my signal. Once I said the fateful command, the two ninja immediately sped off, leaving enough dust in their wake to almost cover the entirety of the START line and some of the closer spectators, causing them to cough. I had to put a hand down to my skirt so that it didn't fly up in the wake of the ninja's speed, and by the time a few minutes had passed by, I could already see green and blue blurs scaling up the Third Hokage's head.

…As expected of ninja speed — and, ugh. _Why_ do I envy ninja again?

Oh yeah — they get to do simple things like race and make it look badass.

I hated being a civilian sometimes.

I was literally so done with the day and my own thoughts. So, when Minato-san poofed into existence near me, I wasn't surprised at his amused expression. Or at the puff of white smoke. Ninja. "They're at it again, huh?"

"…Minato-san, could you hug me please?" The Yellow Flash blinked before looking down at me.

He paused. "…Why?"

I just frowned up at him. "Ninja physics are ridiculous and I would like a normal hug before this whole thing ends, so please?"

 _And I would like to enjoy a soft hug before Guy ends up_ _ **choking**_ _me…_

I could only hope he _wouldn't_ , but since this was _Guy_ we were talking about, I didn't have the highest of hopes.

Minato-san simply gave me a look that spoke volumes of his disbelief before kneeling down to my height and lightly wrapping his arms around me. Despite the tough Konoha flak jacket, he was still warm and snuggly, so I just buried my face into the crook of his neck with a sigh for a few seconds before pulling away, face a little red. "Thank you, Minato-san — I'll be hugging you every day I see you from now on, okay?"

The Jounin blinked before grinning happily and lightly patting my head. "I'll be looking forward to that, Tomoko-chan."

"TOMOKO-CHAN!" The loud, youthful yell was the only indicator of the two competitors coming back before a green blur literally tackled me in a hug, making me drop the white flag in my hands. I didn't even have time to register the feeling of Guy's hug before he lifted me up by my torso, allowing me to see Nagareboshi Cafe's sign for a few seconds before putting me back down, dusting me off.

I couldn't help but feel so done with the whole competition already. "G-Guy-kun…"

He didn't choke me, but…

"How was that, Tomoko-chan? Was my hug the most youthful one you've had?!" The Green Beast apparently didn't notice my blank expression, giving me a thumbs up and a sparkling white smile in response.

_How am I supposed to tell him that I felt the opposite about that hug with_ _**that** _ _smile?!_

Apparently Kakashi noticed my internal plight, sighing before lightly pushing the Green Genin to the side. "You dolt, that's not how you hug Tomoko."

_Huh?_

I could only register Kakashi's figure in front of me before gentle hands went around my torso, bringing me into a warm embrace. Unlike Guy's attempt, Kakashi's was considerate with his hold being surprisingly soft and light, allowing me to physically relax and wrap my arms around his neck.

For once, everyone disappeared. It was just me and my best friend, enjoying a warm hug.

It just felt…right.

That's why I couldn't help but squawk in surprise when Kakashi lifted me up by my knees, holding me up high enough to see the tips of Nagareboshi's ceiling, and the tingly feeling accompanying the experience made me laugh. "K-Kakashi-kun, hey!" Giggles kept escaping my mouth as I attempted to hold onto my best friend, my fingers finding themselves in his spiky silver hair.

And then Kakashi started _spinning me_. I didn't even have time to think about how _weird_ and _out of character_ the whole thing was because the sensation of the world swirling around me made more laughs leave my lips. " _Ha ha ha_ , K-Kakashi-kun~! Y-You don't — _hee_ — have to — _heehee_ — do that~! I-I'm getting — _hee_ — dizzy~!"

I could vaguely sense the amount of disbelief from the crowd before my best friend brought me down, immediately bringing me into a tighter hug. From the close distance, I could _feel_ the happy smile on Kakashi's face. So, he was proud of this. Somehow?

It took a moment for my heart to stop its sudden marathon for Kakashi to pull away, and I could see the warmth and trolling amusement in his silver orbs. "How was that?" Even with the mask, I could tell that he was smirking at me, and I couldn't help but happily grin back.

What a dork.

"I think we have a winner, old friend." Regretfully, I pulled away from the warm hug to face the expectant gazes of Guy _and_ the other villagers.

I think I can assure you my reaction was justified.

_...Eh?_

I threw away the thought before coughing into my fist and making a straight expression. "Well, you both performed exceptionally, but there could only be one winner. Based on hug quality, the winner is…" I ended up grabbing Kakashi's wrist to lift into the air triumphantly. "Hatake Kakashi!"

There was a moment of silence. Then...

"AUGH!" The overly defeated noise that Guy made sounded _really_ upsetting as he fell over comically, legs twitching in the air for a moment. Kakashi and I ended up looking down at him in a mixture of confusion and horror. To add onto the horror, Guy immediately jumped back up in order to get in our faces, sparkling tears in his eyes. "Kakashi! Tomoko-chan! This loss will not be in vain. To beat you again, Kakashi, I will run around the village for 500 laps in the name of Youth!"

I couldn't help my shoulders from slumping. _Really?_ I didn't even have time to mutter a word because the Green Genin ran off into another part of the village, vaguely screaming, " _For Youth!"_ and, " _We will meet again!"_ in the distance.

And wait a second. Hold the phone.

…Did I just hear crickets chirping in the marketplace? It's not even nighttime yet!

Minato-san blinked before smiling. "Well, was that a good training exercise, Kakashi?"

In response, I just looked up at my best friend, and he just sighed, facepalming again.

"Eh, it could've been better." The sound of Kakashi's dry voice only served to make my heart soar giddily due to finally registering what had just happened, and I couldn't help but jump up and hug him. Of course, with the least amount of force possible. His resounding ' _Oof_ ' only served to add as frosting to the overall happiness I was feeling. "…Tomoko?"

I didn't even think about what I was saying and just spoke honestly. "Thank you, Kakashi-kun. Really, thank you for being my best friend."

Call me cheesy, but I meant it. With all my heart.

I could feel him blink near my cheek before he sighed again, returning my hug. "There's no need to thank me for anything, Tomoko."

_Humble as always. Just like your Dad._

I ended up pulling away a bit to look into his eyes, facing him with a warm smile. "How about I take you up on that song before Minato-san needs you for a mission? You still have some time, right?"

To the side, the Yellow Flash smiled and nodded, approving glint in his blue eyes. Kakashi himself blinked for a moment before giving me a soft eye smile, silver orbs shining with warmth.

"Yeah, that sounds great."

In the end, I don't think I played anything better. Going with _The Afternoon Streets_ from Kingdom Hearts was a really good choice since everyone in Nagareboshi could relax after that whole debacle. From the corner of my eye, I could see a small smile on Kakashi's lips through his mask while his eyes were closed, back slumped against the chair next to me. And at one point, I think I saw a few middle-aged couples, Minato-san and Kushina-san included, actually get up and start dancing slowly to the beat.

In the end, it was one of the greatest days of my life.

Which was probably why I didn't expect the next month to be filled with bad news about the upcoming war and to see Sakumo-san come into the cafe one late night with tears in his eyes.


	14. Let's Just Live

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anybody or anything except for Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. This is, what I believe, to be the longest chapter I’ve ever written for Civilian Pianist, and because of this, there are many songs specifically for this chapter. For the last part of the chapter, I would specifically point you towards:  
> *Kyle Landry and Josh Chiu’s collaboration piece on Kingdom Hearts’ Passion (just imagine a cello playing alongside them).  
> *The Videri String Quartet’s covers of Red Like Roses, Mirror Mirror, From Shadows, and I Burn from RWBY in that order.  
> *SheNoob087’s piano/violin tutorials of Red Like Roses, Mirror Mirror, From Shadows, and I Burn from RWBY in that order. (play in tandem with the Videri String Quartet for full effect)  
> *And finally, Keyboard Konan’s cover of Let’s Just Live from RWBY.  
> **The lyrics of Let’s Just Live are also used in this story, so I’m just saying this right now - any songs mentioned from RWBY or any other media belong to their specific owners (in this case, to John Williams and his wonderful daughter Casey). Please go and support the original artists!  
> Please enjoy!

_Chapter 13: Let’s Just Live_

At first, when the months passed with spring changing into winter, there wasn’t much to talk about. If anything, a lot of the ninja clientele were tense lately, whispering amongst themselves even when I was playing the piano.

It was as though they were aware that something was happening outside of Konoha’s walls.

But initially, I didn’t think much on it, continuing to do my job and making small talk with the regulars that stopped by. Kakashi still visited, but these days, he was a lot more quiet, asking for calmer pieces of music before initiating a hug with me and leaving with Minato-san on some kind of mission.

It was only yesterday that I finally took action. Sitting around watching everybody mope, Kakashi included, was not what I wanted to do with my life.  

* * *

“...”

“…Kakashi-kun?”

“...”

In response to his silence, I tried again. This wasn’t a good sign. “Kakashi-kun?”

The ninja blinked, as though he was just coming back into the world of the living, before focusing on me with hesitant silver eyes. “…Tomoko?”

I couldn’t help but frown. “What’s the matter, Kakashi-kun? You’ve been quiet all day.”

My best friend simply looked down at his lap with a sigh, not meeting my eyes. “…It’s nothing, Tomoko.”

 _…Like hell it’s nothing_.

Shaking my head, I lightly scooted over on the piano bench to grab Kakashi’s face in my hands to turn him towards me. In response, my best friend blinked before attempting to look away again. Just from touching his face alone, I could tell that the skin was somewhat dry and the mask was worn — meaning that something was going on.

That wasn’t good. Damage control needed to be done now. I needed to help him.

Kakashi needed this talk — at least before the situation got worse.

I spoke honestly, attempting to keep my voice gentle and controlled. “Kakashi-kun, we’ve been friends for almost 3 years now. Don’t put it off as nothing, okay? You’re my best friend, and I’m just worried about you. Don’t take it as pity or anything like that, alright? Because I chose to care about you — I chose to worry about you. So don’t take it as some kind of obligatory sympathy — because I chose to become your friend and be with you, alright? So, it’s my choice to ask you and try to help you.”

The silver eyes I grew to know so fondly widened in surprise, pupils narrowed. “…Tomoko…”

My heart clenched tightly in response, and I immediately pulled him into a warm hug, desperately burying my face into his shoulder.

_He shouldn’t look so shocked like that. Kakashi out of all people — my wonderful best friend with amazing hugs — shouldn’t be so surprised at hearing that._

“So, _please_ , Kakashi-kun — don’t push me away and hide what you’re feeling. You’re more important to me and a lot of other people than you might think.”

“Tomoko…” Why did Kakashi have to sound so _sad_ when just saying my name?

 _What in all hells did Konoha — no — the ninja world put him through to make him like this when I wasn’t looking?_  

For a moment, we both sat there quietly, taking in the presence of one another before Kakashi responded. To my surprise, he smiled lightly against my hair, wrapping his arms around my back to return the hug, tightening the hold almost immediately. “…Thanks, Tomoko. I needed that — it’s just been a little rough at home.”

I didn’t even hesitate to ask, pulling away somewhat from the hug to look into my best friend’s eyes. “Do you want to talk about it? Mom and Dad did install some new privacy seals on the piano.”

“...” Kakashi looked to the side for a moment, expression hesitant.

Worry flooded my entire system. He had gone silent again.

_Why are you hesitating, Kakashi?_

I gulped, trying again. “…Kakashi-kun?”

The silver-haired Chunin turned back to look at me again, and I couldn’t help but notice the immense amount of _emotion_ in the silver orbs. Kakashi, my best friend, looked like he was about to _cry_. Oh goodness.

“…Can we?” he choked out quietly, voice cracking.

I didn’t even hesitate to press on the nearest privacy seal on the piano, this one specifically on the right side of the piano keys, before smiling gently at him.

I didn’t even think about having to activate it — apparently it was already at work once I touched it. Thank goodness for the Sealing Department coming up with civilian-friendly seals!

“Of course we can — that’s what friends are for.” Without any hesitation, I pulled the frozen ninja into another hug, allowing him to rest his head against my shoulder. “You don’t have to hold it in all by yourself, Kakashi-kun. You _can_ let go _._ ”

A soft sigh resounded against my shoulder as Kakashi’s hands shakily wound across my back. “…You can’t see me, right?”

My heart broke in response, my own voice cracking a bit. “…I can’t, but Kakashi-kun, you don’t have to follow the ninja rulebook here. It’s true that in the field, Rule #25 says that ‘shinobi must never show their tears,’ but you’re _not_ in the field right now.” I ended up gently putting a hand on my best friend’s head, lightly running my fingers through his soft silver hair. “You’re here with me in Nagareboshi, and it’s okay to not be a shinobi here. It’s _okay_ to be human — no one’s going to judge you. _I_ will never judge you.”

That did it. To my shock and immense sadness, I could feel tears beginning to stain the shoulder of my kimono dress, the figure of my best friend clearly shaking from all the emotion. Kakashi’s hands were desperately clutching onto my clothes with soft whimpers reaching my ears, despite how muffled they were. I found myself biting my bottom lip, tightening the hug on my best friend in an attempt to keep back my own tears. We stayed like that for quite a while, holding one another in various attempts to calm down, tears all galore.

 _Kakashi’s only 8 — he_ **_shouldn’t_ ** _have to sound so sad. He_ **_shouldn’t_ ** _be attempting to hold it all back like this._

“T-Tomoko…” I blinked away the first bits of tears to focus on my best friend’s voice, his first attempt at speaking in the past few moments. Eh? “Y-You seriously _suck_.”

 _Huh?_ Kakashi clutched onto me a little tighter. “Wh-why is it always _you_ that knows what to say? Wh-wh-why is it always _you_ that knows how to make me look and feel so _ridiculous_?”

_…Because I know what it’s like to be alone? Because I know what it’s like to lose everything?_

_‘Be Vy! What happened?! Oh my god — you’re bleeding! Someone, call 911!’_

_‘Be Vy! Please don’t die! Please — stay with Mommy and Daddy —_ **_Please_** _!’_

 _‘Please hang in there, Vy, we’re getting you to the hospital ASAP!_ **_Don’t leave_** _!’_

I pushed away the memories to focus on my best friend and smiled sadly, continuing to stroke Kakashi’s spiky silver hair. “…You’re not ridiculous when you’re just being human Kakashi-kun. And honestly, I don’t know — maybe it’s because I know you so well.”

Kakashi laughed shakily. “…I-I guess we’re both fools then, huh?”

I sarcastically shrugged, pulling away a little to slam my forehead into Kakashi’s own, colliding with his metal forehead protector.

_…O kay, just ouch. That wasn’t a good idea._

“…Tomoko?” In any other situation, I would’ve laughed at the blank and surprised expression that Kakashi had on his face, but this wasn’t exactly the time. I ignored the pain, as well as the little bit of blood from my head, to hold Kakashi’s face in my hands again to face him properly.

“Kakashi-kun, right now, I don’t care what you may think on the matter, but you’re _not ridiculous_ . Whoever put that in your head is a complete _fool_.”

Kakashi blinked in surprise, tears still budding in his silver eyes.

I continued firmly. “It’s _okay_ to cry. It’s _okay_ to be emotional — because it shows you’re more than a shinobi.” I attempted to smile at him, wiping away some stray tears from his masked cheeks while keeping my voice steady. “Being emotional like this just shows that you’re still Hatake Kakashi — my best friend and a person I treasure very much. So, don’t think that being upset like this makes you any less of a shinobi than anyone else. Everyone cries at one point — it just shows that you’re _human_.”

Kakashi breathed shakily, voice cracking in disbelief. “E-even if it looks ridiculous?”

I just frowned, wiping away the blood on my head to raise an eyebrow at him. “Even if it looks ridiculous. Humanity is pretty illogical that way.”

My best friend blinked before shakily sighing. “…You’re unbelievable.”

In response, I just grinned and lightly poked his masked cheek. “But you’re still with me anyways.”

“Y-yeah…” Kakashi’s breathing slowly steadied with that response, his shoulders finally steadying from all the shaking before he looked up at me, catching the hand I was using to poke him with his. His silver eyes were much shinier than before, but I could tell that the fond gaze was genuine. “Yeah.”

My best friend was back. I gave him another small hug before pulling away to wipe away any stray tears with a warm smile. “Now then, what did you want to talk about?”

* * *

The news wasn’t good.

…It turns out that the Third Great Shinobi World War has now begun. From a lot of what Kakashi was saying, the mission that Sakumo-san had told me about a few months ago did end up happening, and it wasn’t good.

Surprisingly, or perhaps, unsurprisingly from the canon-verse point of view, even Kakashi didn’t know the full details of what happened. Sakumo-san himself was strangely quiet about the whole thing, not even attempting to talk about it and instead shoving himself into his room for a few days, only coming out to go to the bathroom or eat a meal.

That wasn’t a good sign in the slightest.

…To make matters worse, the adult ninja who knew the silver-haired Jounin were apparently not helping. After I had comforted Kakashi yesterday, some of the regular shinobi clientele literally _disappeared_ from the vicinity of the cafe, and I had a strange feeling some of the civilians weren’t exempt from this either. At times, I even heard some of the hired help whispering in the corners and giving Kakashi the evil eye when he came in. Luckily, all it took was for Mom and Dad to glare and threaten to fire them for back-talking in order to make them shut up.

Even then, I wasn’t exempt from hearing the whispers.

* * *

  _“Why is that innocent girl hanging out with the Hatake?”_

_“How pitiful…Hopefully he doesn’t corrupt her little mind.”_

_“He better not be!”_

* * *

It took all I had to not snap at them.

No wonder Kakashi was so upset yesterday. Apparently, all the villagers were gossiping about him and Sakumo-san, treating both like they were almost _nothing_ , and since Kakashi didn’t know about anything, he was just as vulnerable as canon Naruto was. I had to physically hold back the angry words building up in my throat in order to concentrate on the situation at hand.

_How in all hell did canon Kakashi deal with this kind of back-talk in his timeline?!_

Honestly, rumors are the worst kind of social shit someone would have to deal with. But when people are bad-mouthing you _when you’re standing right there_ , then you’ve messed up. Horrendously.

If the rumors were enough to make Kakashi, my stoic best friend, break down into _tears_ in my arms, then what were they doing to Sakumo-san?

Sakumo-san, the previously revered White Fang, who was, in the end, still a single father mourning the loss of his wife while trying to raise a ninja child?

How could a gentle soul like his handle all that?

Even in my old life, I never really knew what it was like to lose a loved one. If anything, I was lucky to have both parents in my past life and in my new one as Tomoko, and even as my past self, she always found herself surrounded by loving friends and peers when sad. Whenever she was depressed, everyone else always noticed and did their best to support her.

But when Sakumo-san went and did something that he believed to be the right thing, only to be shunned by the people he saved and supported, how would that feel? Adding in the loss of his wife and the distant relationship with his son? I wouldn’t have blamed the canon Sakumo-san for taking his own life the way he did — but this time, it would be different.

Sakumo-san couldn’t die — I _wouldn’t_ let him die. Not after getting to care for his son as much as I did.

Yes. Kakashi’s important to me —  and I know that more than anything, I wouldn’t want to see him spiral down into a self-destructive path the way he did in canon. Sakumo-san’s death _traumatized_ him — probably more so than the trauma my _past self_ had — leading to so much suffering that could’ve been avoided had the White Fang lived.

I know Kakashi — my best friend — deserves so much more than the pain he was given in the original Naruto.

It was that thought in mind that after Kakashi told me everything, I came up with an idea.

* * *

“Huh?” Kakashi’s silver eyes were wide with disbelief. “Y-You want me to bring Dad _here_? To Nagareboshi Cafe?”

“Not today, of course.” I nodded, breathing in deeply.

 _Honestly, there’s no guarantee this is going to work considering therapy is basically_ **_nonexistent_ ** _in the ninja world, last I checked._

Still, I held back from clicking my tongue, smiling instead. “But yeah. Tomorrow is a good day. Bring him along when it’s almost closing time though, alright?”

For once, Kakashi looked nervously doubtful, face lined with concern even through his mask. “Tomoko, what _are_ you going to do? Even I haven’t been able to talk to Dad lately…”

In response, I simply smiled sadly, using one hand to pat the large instrument at my side. “Do what I do best, of course.”

Music was always the best thing to convey emotion and feelings to another person.

Kakashi blinked again before sighing shakily, looking down at his sandals. “Tomoko…I’m not sure if that’s going to work. Dad’s just…” he trailed off, voice cracking a little from desperation. “Dad hasn’t been responding to _anything_ I’ve been saying. How will the piano help here?”

_Oh goodness._

For once, I had to take a few moments to formulate an answer. Kakashi was really emotionally raw right now, and I knew I was treading on a thin line if I wanted to really get this plan across. In the end, I sighed and decided to go with my usual, heart-on-my-sleeve approach. “Honestly, Kakashi-kun, I’m not fully sure. But from my 3-4 years being at Nagareboshi Cafe, it’s always been music that allows people to open up and be themselves. That’s how I met you, right?”

Immediately, my best friend looked up at me, recognition as well as a small sliver of hope shining in his silver eyes. “…Yeah…”

“That means something. And we don’t know until we try, Kakashi-kun.” I breathed in again before smiling at him. “Besides, this won’t be one of my solo performances.”

“…What?” Kakashi deadpanned, mouth wide through his mask. The gesture actually made him look rather cute, and I couldn’t help but teasingly wink at him, miming the motion of zipping up my mouth and tossing the key.

It was better to be positive than show how panicked I was feeling.

“You’ll find out tomorrow.”

* * *

In the end, it was almost time. I couldn’t help but glance at the analog clock sitting on one of the bar walls, gulping.

 _Only 10 minutes left until they should show up._  

My hands were shaky and sweaty in my lap and quite honestly, my heart was running a marathon despite it being a relatively cool winter evening. The new kimono dress I was wearing, styled specifically after Super Sailor Moon, wasn’t exactly helping my mood. If anything, the bright pink lace of my sleeves and the white-blue pattern of the skirt reminded me just how much was at stake with this plan.

_…Will this really work? Will Sakumo-san be able to listen to us properly?_

“...Tomoko-chan?”

 _Mom_.

Her familiar voice immediately stopped whatever butterflies were flying around in my stomach, and I looked up only to see her concerned blue eyes staring at me softly. For once, she wasn’t donning the usual work kimono, instead choosing a formal sleeveless bottle-green dress that went past her ankles. Black medium-height high heels complemented the dress, allowing her to stand a few centimeters taller than usual. Her hair was done in a simple side-ponytail, allowing the ebony strands to shine in the spotlight established from the stage. Along with the bright magenta hair ribbon on her left hair strand, well…  

Yeah. In all honesty, Mom could’ve passed for an actress with how she was dressed. “Are you going to be okay?”

“I-I’ll be fine, Mom.” I attempted to grin at her, but it came out more nervous and tense.

Mom simply frowned, soft red lipstick standing out against her mouth before she leaned down to my height at the piano bench to pull me into a warm hug. “Oh, Tomoko-chan, you don’t have to hide it. I know you’re worried.”

I found myself wincing a little in her hold, considerably tense. _Ah, she read through me as always. I guess I’m too open._ “Mommy…”

She pulled away a little to look at me in the eye, sympathy shining in the familiar blue orbs. “It’ll be okay, sweetie. You planned for this and even if things don’t turn out the way you want them to, Mommy and Daddy will always support you.”

It took all my self-control to not burst into tears right then and there.

 _Looks like no matter what happens to me, I will always have great parents_.

“Your mom’s right there, sweetheart.”

 _Dad_.

Mom pulled away for a moment in order to let Dad into the family circle, and for once, he looked more like a professional businessman than the Dad I knew, donning a black tuxedo and tie while having shaved his stubble. Despite this, he still reached over to cuddle me anyway, tucking my head under his now clean chin. “Mom and Dad could always tell you were worried about Kakashi-kun and Sakumo, so it’s about time we stepped up to help relieve your worries.” I blinked, squirming a little only to look up into soft brown eyes that literally screamed _loving dad_. “Then again, we never did play any music for you, did we, Tomoko-chan?” He turned for a moment to focus on the other instruments in the cafe vicinity, and I couldn’t help but shakily smile in agreement.

Accompanying my piano today would be a violin and cello, both standing rather proudly in their respective corners of the cafe stage, shining in the spotlight. Honestly, I felt bad that I didn’t know about Mom and Dad’s music talent sooner, since they were _wonderful_. No doubt about that, and don’t question me. Heck. Had I not gotten my piano ability as well as I did, I had a feeling that Nagareboshi’s entertainment would’ve mainly come from my parents.

Looks like music did run in the family. And I couldn’t be any more happier.

I ended up shakily wiping my sweaty hands on my kimono skirt before reaching up and pulling Mom and Dad into a group hug. It was a rather uncomfortable one, since I still wasn’t at a height where I could have a hug without any height adjustments, but I didn’t mind and just said what was on my mind. “Thank you, Mommy, Daddy. I love you both very much.”

Even at the height I was at, I could feel the warm smiles from both of my parents near my cheeks. “We love you too, Tomoko-chan.”

It was at that moment that the clock struck 9 pm, and the sound of footsteps quickly became apparent near Nagareboshi’s entrance. To my surprise, my parents seemed to know exactly what I was thinking, sharing a gaze with me before walking over to their respective parts of the stage to take a seat and pick up their instruments (Mom the violin and Dad the cello).

Mom and Dad already knew who was at the door.

Kakashi and Sakumo-san were finally here.

* * *

  _In another universe, it was said that Konoha's White Fang committed suicide._

* * *

The White Fang was honestly feeling both lethargic and tired all at once. “…Kakashi, what’s going on?”

And yet his son barely turned his head, only really tightening his grip on Sakumo’s hand. “…Just follow me, Dad, please.”

* * *

  _Apparently he used his own tanto, the White Light Chakra Saber, to do the deed._

* * *

Sakumo sighed. “…Kakashi, I’m not really in the mood for this. Why are we heading out into the village this late at night?”

Kakashi only glanced back at the former White Fang with an unreadable expression, never once stopping his walking pace. “…Please, Dad. Don’t question it and follow me.”

“…Alright.”

* * *

  _It was his own son, Kakashi, that had found him that night, already dead and leaving his blood to stain the tatami mats of the Hatake Household._

* * *

The next thing Sakumo knew, he was facing two front doors that looked very familiar.  “…Kakashi, is this?”

The Chunin just sighed. “Yeah, it’s Nagareboshi Cafe.”

Amidst all the emotion in his heart, the former White Fang just felt confused. “…Why did you take me here?”

“A friend told me to bring you here.”

“A friend…?”

* * *

 _At least, that’s how it should’ve been_.

* * *

Kakashi pushed open the door and pulled his father in, only for Sakumo to see something amazing.

“...!”

Yuki — no, _Hoshino_ Judai was standing right in front of them, clean-shaven and donning a _suit_ of all things. What? “Hey, Sakumo. It’s been a while.”

“Judai…! Wh-What is all this?” Sakumo found himself looking around frantically. His environment _was_ Nagareboshi Cafe, but with the shine of the tables, the various streamers, and the lights dimmed, it didn’t feel like it.

“Well…” The former ninja just whistled while looking to the side. “Think of it as something to motivate you again.”

“…What is that supposed to mean?”

* * *

  _No one originally reached out to the White Fang that night. But somehow, things had changed._

* * *

Another familiar voice rang out, making him freeze. “…We know what’s happened to you, Sakumo-kun.”

The White Fang turned his head only to gape. “…You too, Hikari?”

The civilian woman was donning a sleeveless green dress, hair tied in a simple side ponytail that reminded him of that amazing violinist he met years ago, all the while smiling gently. “We’ve noticed it’s been hard on you lately — and honestly, this was the only way we could think of to support you. Tomoko-chan’s the one who came up with the idea.”

Sakumo’s disbelief could’ve spanned _miles_. “…Tomoko-chan?” In his confusion, the White Fang turned to his son for answers. “Kakashi, is this what you meant…?”

“…” All the Chunin did was nod.

Hikari just smiled again before motioning with her hand to some seats. “Sakumo-kun, Kakashi-kun, how about you two take a seat near the front of the stage. The concert is about to start.”

Sakumo closed his gaping mouth and did his best to hide the unshed tears in his eyes just to choke out a response. “…Concert?”

* * *

  _Some would say it was coincidence. Others a miracle._

* * *

Once Sakumo shakily found his way to a seat in front of the stage, the lights all turned off in exchange for a large spotlight in the center of the cafe. “Welcome to Nagareboshi Cafe tonight, Sakumo-san, Kakashi-kun.”

The White Fang just couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “…Tomoko-chan?”

Apparently Kakashi was sharing the same sentiments, staring up at the stage in disbelief. “…Tomoko?”

Sure enough, it was the civilian pianist herself, standing on the stage underneath all the light. Sakumo didn’t even recognize the new dress she was wearing, and the bright magenta obi would’ve been blinding if not for the lighter white-blue-yellow striped skirt. Tomoko took a breath in front of the microphone, folding her hands underneath her long, pink laced sleeves, before opening her mouth.

“I had invited you two to Nagareboshi Cafe for no other reason than to let you two relax. I think we all know better than anyone else now that war has started and how it’s been taking a toll on everyone, whether on the field or in the village.”

Sakumo found himself looking down. “…”

A soft sigh sounded from the microphone. “Unfortunately, what I think we all end up forgetting is that the soldiers — the shinobi that go out and fight on the front lines — are humans too. When we are pushed into a tough situation, we can only trust on our instincts and morals to pull us through, and even then, others judge us. Why? Is it because they thought we were making a mistake? Is it because we are at war, with so many others dying at our feet, that they can’t help but find someone to blame?”

The words were hitting a little too close to home as tears started to bud in the former White Fang’s eyes. “…”

Sakumo could feel Kakashi staring at him from the side. “…Dad…”

A shakily breath hit the microphone as the pianist continued. “Honestly, I’m not sure. All I am is a civilian. A civilian pianist, playing music for those who come for respite. I’ve never been out in the field, participating in a cruel battle. I’ve never even thought of having to kill someone for the sake of saving another. But even then, I can at least say one thing. If you mess up, don’t just wallow in your failure. Suffer through it and repent.”

_What?_

Sakumo found himself looking up only to get an eyeful of bright blue orbs. “…!”

Kakashi gaped quietly. “…Tomoko?”

Sakumo could see a visible lump in the girl’s throat as she continued, gulping in another breath. “Don’t go thinking that in order to get your honor back, you have to die. Don’t think that by taking your own life, the other lives lost will instantly come back. Because they won’t.” The girl stopped again to close her eyes and take another breath. “Life is a gift. Even when the world is bloodied red with the suffering of others, even when society attempts to break you down in every sense of the word, there are still beautiful things that can be found in this world. Even when the world is at its bleakest point, there will still be people here that care for you. No matter what, there will always be someone who loves you.”

Sakumo’s mouth was now hanging from the hinges of his jaw. “…Tomoko-chan…”

“So, don’t think about taking the coward’s way out. Because in the end, you’re just adding onto the pain that’s already there. If you want to fix things, work hard at trying to atone for what you’ve done. Live not just for yourself, but for the people that care for you.”

A soft pause followed. Then Sakumo dully realized that Tomoko was looking directly _at him._  

What?

“…Don’t start to cherish something after you lost it. Remember all the positive moments you’ve had, all the people you’ve loved, and _just live_. Don’t fear loss or pain. Take it in, endure it, and use it to help others. Because in the end, life is short, and with the world the way it is, wouldn’t it be better to impart love and care to our loved ones before the inevitable?”

The tears were now blatantly rolling down Sakumo’s face. “…Tomoko-chan…”

The girl just smiled at him rather shakily. “That’s what I hope you will be able to get out of this small concert. Please, sit down, and just enjoy the music.” Then, Tomoko took a soft bow, stepping back a few paces before situating herself on the piano bench. Even with the tears streaming down the ninja’s face, Sakumo could still make out Judai and Hikari taking seats nearby the piano, each adult holding onto their own instrument.

* * *

  _No one really knows how things fully changed. But some say it began with a little girl, telling the tales of various worlds through her music._

* * *

 If Sakumo strained his hearing enough, he would’ve heard Tomoko whispering before every song. “First, find a passion. Find a Sanctuary to go to when lost.”

* * *

  _Apparently, on that day, she worked with her family to bring about the largest music spectacle the small cafe had ever seen at the time. The only ones spectating were the White Fang and his son, but some claim that they saw hints of the Yellow Flash and the Red Habanero lurking around in the background._

* * *

Outside the window of Nagareboshi Cafe, Namikaze Minato found himself blinking in disbelief. “…Wow…”

Behind the Jounin, Uzumaki Kushina attempted to look over his shoulder and peer inside. “I-Is that Tomoko-chan? A-and Hikari and Judai playing with her?!”

The Jounin found himself smiling.“I think this is the first time we’ve seen the entire Hoshino family play together, huh Kushina?”

“Yeah…it sounds so beautiful…”

* * *

  _No one really expected piano, violin, and cello to all mesh together so well. In fact, I don’t think anyone had attempted anything like it in that small cafe before._

* * *

Once the first song finished, Sakumo could see the pianist’s mouth move again in a soft whisper. “Then, just like red roses, remember those who are at rest.”

* * *

_But it worked. Such an unlikely combination and yet it all flowed so seamlessly, very much like the family members behind each instrument._

* * *

“Don’t look into the white mirror and ask who’s the loneliest of them all.”

* * *

_The mother, passionately playing the violin in swishes of verdant green from her dress._

* * *

"Strike the problem at its core from the shadows.”

* * *

_The father, gently caressing the cello with his bow, almost shining despite being in all black._

* * *

“Face it head-on and let your flame burn brightly.”

* * *

_And the little girl, at the center of it all, playing the piano like never before. Hands flying across the black and white keys, and even singing a small solo._

* * *

Near the end, Tomoko took in one last deep breath before facing the keys with determination. _“And just live.”_

Outside the window, Kushina gasped. “Is Tomoko-chan actually…?!”

“ _It used to feel like a fairy tale,_

_Now it seems we were just pretending_

_We’d fix our world, then on our way to a happy ending.”_

* * *

  _Apparently, it was a song she heard only once. No one really knew where she got it from, but in the end, it still meant something. The theme wasn’t lost on the audience._

* * *

 “…!” Sakumo could’ve stopped breathing. _Tomoko-chan, is this your message to me?_

Kakashi’s disbelief was rolling off him in waves, judging by the tight, shaky grip he had on Sakumo’s hand. “Tomoko…”

“ _Then it turned out life was far less like a bedtime story_

_Than a tragedy with no big reveal of the hero’s glory._

_And it seems we weren’t prepared_

_For a game that wasn’t fair._

_Do we just go home? Can we follow through? When all hope is gone, there is one thing we can do…”_

_I think the message resonated with everyone present that day._

“ _Let’s just live! Day by day, and not be conquered by our sorrows._

_The past can’t hold us down, we must break free._

_Inside we’re torn apart, but time will mend our hearts._

_Move onward, not there yet, so let’s just live!”_

* * *

_Possibly, that was the miracle itself. Despite not knowing anything, that little girl reached out and did something almost no one else attempted to do. And that alone made a huge difference._

* * *

Once the last note was played, Sakumo could feel the beginnings of sobs coming out of his throat. “…Tomoko-chan…Judai…Hikari…Kakashi…”

His son blinked, clearly surprised, before turning his head to look at the former White Fang. “Dad?”

Soon enough, Sakumo found his face in his hands as the first sobs started leaving his mouth. “Thank you…just thank you…”

* * *

  _Instead of blood, the White Fang found love that night. He may have lost his wife, but that night alone proved that there was more to life than he thought._

* * *

“S-Sakumo-san?!” Tomoko immediately jumped off the piano bench to run over to his side, handkerchief in hand. “A-ah, you don’t have to cry! Oh, it’s okay…!”

“Oi, Sakumo, you’ve really had a rough time!” Sakumo could literally _hear_ the grimace in Judai’s voice as his footsteps neared. “Why didn’t you think about coming to us for one thing? Hikari and I could’ve helped you!”

Unlike her husband and daughter, Hikari only sighed before putting her violin down on a nearby chair and walking over. A small, kind smile graced her face. “My husband’s right about that, Sakumo-kun. You could’ve easily come to us for help.”

“I-It’s just been so _difficult_ .” The sobs continued to escape his lips as Sakumo did his best to wipe away tears. “E-Everyone just keeps blaming me for the loss of those 12 ninja out there because I abandoned the mission, and e-e-even the people I saved are shunning me! W-where did I go _wrong_?!”

“D-Dad!” The White Fang was surprised to hear Kakashi’s voice _crack_ from his side. “T-that’s not true! You were just doing your best!”

“B-but they’re shunning _you too_ , Kakashi! It’s my fault that the war is raging now, and I just can’t take it anymore! They should just point at me, not at you!”

Judai only sighed as he shook his head. “Well, people are shits like that.”

Hikari just gave her spouse a look of disapproval. “Judai! Language!”

“What, Hikari? It’s true, you know.” Judai ended up turning to Tomoko, leaning down with a cheerful smile. “You don’t mind Daddy cursing now, do you Tomoko-chan?”

In response, the pianist just blinked before opening her mouth. “Not really if it’s true…?”

Hikari gaped. “T-Tomoko-chan!”

The named girl just squeaked before giving an apologetic look to her violinist mother. “…I’m sorry, Mommy.”

The next thing Sakumo knew, he could hear his old comrade snort through his nose before an arm wrapped around his shoulders to pull him into a friendly side-hug. “Seriously though, man, you shouldn’t let those shits get to you. They weren’t in your position, and seriously — those men that you saved, they should’ve not put themselves in that situation to make you act out like that. It was their own fucking faults and they should be cursing themselves, not you!” Judai paused. “And quite honestly, I think you’re a hero for saving who you could.”

The White Fang just couldn’t believe what he was hearing and looked up to see warm brown eyes staring at him. How long had it been since someone looked at him like that? “J-Judai…?”

“Seriously, Sakumo,” the former nin smiled gently. “You did what you could. What matters now is figuring out where to go from here.”

“B-But what can I do?”

“…Talk to me for once, Dad. _”_

Sakumo just blinked before turning a teary gaze at the new voice, surprise coming up in his response. “…Kakashi?”

To the White Fang’s surprise, his son was actively pouting through his mask, arms crossed over his chest. “If you were so worried about the villagers talking about me, we could’ve talked about it together and figured something out. You didn’t have to hide in your room.” In the end, the Chunin just sighed before walking over and joining the hug, arms wrapping around his father’s torso. “…I missed you.”

The tears were threatening to flow all over again on Sakumo’s face. “K-Kakashi…”

Nearby, the civilian girl at the center of it all just smiled happily. “See, Sakumo-san? I told you Kakashi-kun loves you.”

“T-Tomoko-chan…”

Hikari just chuckled before walking over and joining the hug herself. “My daughter’s right, Sakumo-kun. We all love you — so don’t forget that, okay?”

As if there weren’t enough surprises already, a familiar redhead yelled through the open window. “S-So do we, _dattebane_!”

Sakumo found himself jerking his head upwards to look in the yell’s direction, only to see a familiar red-blonde duo. “K-Kushina? Minato?”

Minato just grinned sheepishly while walking in with his girlfriend. “Sorry, Sakumo-san, we couldn’t help but overhear the whole thing, even the music, and we wanted to put in our opinions as well. Jiraiya-sensei would easily tell you that he’s available to talk to you as well.”

Soon enough, Kushina was pushing her way past her boyfriend to join in on the group hug. “Yeah! We’re always here for you too, _dattebane_ ! Don’t think that you’re going through this war alone! We’re all here, _ttebane_!”

Happiness was slowly starting to fill the void left by that mission in his chest. “K-Kushina…”

In the end, Tomoko-chan, the organizer of the whole event, just smiled happily before joining in the group hug herself.  “See, Sakumo-san? If you can’t find a reason to live for yourself, live for everybody here. They all still need you. Kakashi-kun still needs you. **I** still need you. So don’t go thinking you’re a burden, okay?”

For the first time in days, Sakumo found himself smiling, even with all the tears. “Thank you… everyone…Thank you…”

* * *

_For once, there was a happy ending to a turbulent day in the shinobi world._


	15. Recuperating

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don’t own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Animenz Piano Sheets’s Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica Soundtrack Medley. In particular, this chapter in particular is dedicated to Frost-Ninja Dragon for having helped me with the idea planning. Thanks again, old friend! Anyway, please enjoy!

_Chapter 14: Recuperating_

It all started with a simple question from Dad.

“Hey, Sakumo, how do you and Kakashi-kun feel about moving in and living with us?”

…To put it lightly, it garnered quite a bit of shock.

“…What?”

“What?”

“Eh? Daddy?”

Any other time, I probably would’ve laughed at the whole situation. I had good reason to. For once, the Hatake father-son duo looked exactly alike if not for Kakashi’s mask, both gaping like breathless fish. Adding in their spiky silver hair, they probably would have made some nice-looking pufferfish.

Wait.

…For some reason, that sounded a lot more disturbing than I thought.

Anyway!

It was the morning after the huge concert plan, and after letting Sakumo-san and Kakashi stay over for the night, we were all just having a shared breakfast in the living room when Dad dropped that specific bomb.

To be honest, I was both expecting this and not expecting this all at once. Expecting it because it’s Dad, and not expecting it because…well, it’s _Dad_. And unlike my old Dad from my past life, this one kinda did things on a whim.

But considering that Mom didn’t even flinch at the mention of the idea and instead smiled like the Yamato Nadeshiko she was, I’m guessing she was in this too.

It took about a few moments for Sakumo-san to stop gaping, and he roughly coughed into his hand in an attempt to straighten himself. “…So, let me get this straight, Judai. Did you just offer Kakashi and I the option of living with you, Hikari, and Tomoko-chan _in_ the same building?”

“Yep!” And Dad was _beaming_ , looking as if he had just solved the world’s greatest puzzle. Huh. Honestly, I was just surprised that he could be so cheerful in the morning considering how some ninja I’ve seen ( _cough_ — Minato-san — _cough_ ) had trouble just getting up from bed.

“…Why?” Sakumo-san deadpanned.

Dad blinked while picking out some lint in-between his fingernails. “Why not?”

“…”

“…”

…Now I think I see where Kakashi and I get our stare-offs and/or contemplative silences from. Guess it runs in the family. Okay then! 

“…Tomoko, please tell me your Dad’s joking.” I just looked over and had to hold back a laugh at Kakashi’s astonished expression. It didn’t quite fit the ‘cool-masked-hero’ image he always seemed to invoke, and hey — I was getting a lot of funny mileage out of this! 

Hehe. Have to bask in the simple things sometimes.

Hiding a giggle behind my pajama sleeve, I just shrugged. “Well, Mom’s serious enough by her expression, and Dad’s not really paying attention to Sakumo-san, so I don’t think he is.”

“… Are all Hoshinos this carefree?” Kakashi said dryly.

Eh.

“…I don’t know whether or not to take that as an insult or a compliment, Kakashi-kun.” I sniped back, raising an eyebrow. “Try to be more specific there.”

In response, my best friend grumbled something that sounded suspiciously like ‘ _Why me_.’

 _Why_ **_you_ ** _indeed, Kakashi-kun?_ I couldn’t help but think, holding back any thoughts of hugging the Chunin. _Kishimoto apparently thought it was a good idea to lay down all the angst and drama onto_ **_you_** _, so, I think it really should be me asking why you have to deal with so much bullshit._  

Soon enough, Sakumo-san sighed, putting a hand to his face. “Judai, I’m not so sure about this. You and your family already did quite a bit last night with that show — are you sure about hosting _us_ in your own home when the rumor mill might hit your business?” 

Oh no. I wasn’t getting a good feeling about this.

Apparently, Dad was missing the point, whether accidentally or deliberately, continuing to look over his fingernails. “What’s wrong with you, Sakumo? Rumors are just rumors — nothing too big.”

Sakumo-san glowered. “…Are you trying to test my patience here, Judai?”

_Oh no, Sakumo-san actually looks a bit angry. Oh no._

“The villagers have already gotten to the point where they’re shunning _my own son_ !” Kakashi and I both ended up jumping when Sakumo-san pounded the table with an angry fist, making the entire thing shake. Ack. “There have been times where I’ve come home and there’s _flowers_ on the doorstep! It’s like they want us to _die_ already! And not to mention, _multiple times_ , I’ve had to clean graffiti away from the household doors just so that Kakashi can come home to a clean house! Do you _really_ want to expose Hikari and Tomoko-chan to that kind of pain?!”

By the end of it, the older Hatake was puffing, face flushed with an angry pink hue and tears budding in his eyes.

 _Oh dear gosh. Sakumo-san, what did Konoha_ **_do_ ** _to you?_  

To my shock and surprise, it was Mom who spoke up, gently placing her left hand on Sakumo-san’s clenched fist. “Sakumo-kun, take a deep breath. Yelling out like that won’t help anything. In fact, I believe you just frightened Kakashi-kun and Tomoko-chan.”

I didn’t even realize my hands were shaking until Mom pointed it out. She looked at me with a gentle, almost timid smile before reaching over and putting her other hand over mine, allowing warmth to seep in.

“Mom…?” It was just then that I realized how soft and high-pitched my voice had gotten.

_…Am I scared? Of Sakumo-san?_

In response, Mom gently turned my hand over to lightly tickle the inside of my palm, looking apologetic. 

“Tomoko-chan, how about you and Kakashi-kun head outside? We’ll be done in just a minute.” I didn’t need any more prompting. I just glanced at my best friend, sharing a stare for a moment before lightly grabbing his hand in mine, squeezing Mom’s hand in a small ‘see you later’ gesture. I could only really force on a tiny smile towards her and Dad before nodding in Sakumo-san’s direction, getting up from my chair and pulling Kakashi with me. If Sakumo-san wanted to say anything otherwise, he didn’t voice it, and I could feel his remorseful stare on my back when heading out.

I just knew we had to get out of that situation ASAP. The only place I could think of was inside of Nagareboshi itself downstairs from the main house, and since it was a weekend, no one was in the cafe except Kakashi and I. Even though it was supposedly safe, far away from the whole argument-zone, my hands were still sweaty and I had to let go of Kakashi’s for a moment to hug myself in a semblance of regaining composure. 

There was a bit of silence, most of which was filled by my attempts to breathe deeply. My heart was going on a full marathon, and the cold air coming from an open cafe window wasn’t helping considering I was still wearing my pajamas (think one of those nightgowns with long sleeves). 

“…Tomoko?”

 _Kakashi_.

In my small panic, I looked up only to see his concerned face very close to mine, silver eyes softened with worry and a frown clearly seen through his black mask. “Are you going to be okay?” 

I didn’t even think about my personal space. Instead, in my small emotional moment, I ended up responding hastily, squeaking out a reply. “U-um, aside from the fact that I’m terrified of Sakumo-san’s anger now, I think I’m good~?”

_If you could count my heart running like all hell because I could feel some killer intent, then yeah!_

In all honesty, _I_ didn’t even believe what I was saying, and apparently, Kakashi felt the same. He let out a long sigh before reaching over to pinch my cheek. “Don’t fool yourself, Tomoko — I can tell you’re worried.”

I winced from both the pain of pinched cheek and the figurative stab at my consciousness, averting my gaze from his.

 _Yep, he knows me too well at this point_.

Even then. For some reason, the idea didn’t sit well in my heart. Sakumo-san always was this nice shinobi to me every time I saw him in Nagareboshi — it was just a huge shock to see him so emotional and _angry_ this morning — and a part of me was probably suffering from the denial of the whole thing.  

_I thought the whole concert would handle most of the emotional shit, but I guess it’s still there…what else should I do then?_

To my surprise, Kakashi reached over to pull me into a hug, letting my head rest against his shoulder. 

_Eh?_

Apparently, he didn’t seem to mind how limp I was and simply tightened his hold around me, a hand finding itself in my hair. “Quit worrying, Tomoko,” Kakashi just huffed against my cheek, fingers going through any tangles in my hair. Despite the small bits of pain from just getting my hair brushed, it surprisingly felt nice coming from the stoic ninja. “I’m sure Judai-san and Dad should be able to come to a conclusion — so, don’t work yourself dead over it. You did a lot already last night.”

Despite Kakashi’s words, a part of me was still tense about the whole situation, causing me to reach over and wrap my arms around my friend’s torso, burying my face into the crook of his shoulder. The warm scent of pine, sweat, and something unmistakably _Kakashi_ wafted into my nose, and I found myself breathing in as much of it as I could in order to calm down. My voice came out a lot less high-pitched, but with hints of  hesitation. “…How can you be so sure, Kakashi-kun?”

“You and your family were the ones that made Dad look like he was _alive_ again, Tomoko.” Kakashi’s huffing sigh tickled the tips of my ears. “Dad finally got a chance to _be himself_ , and I don’t think he’s just going to push you guys away after all that.”

Relief flooded most of my system, but a part of worry still lingered in my throat. “…What about you, Kakashi-kun?” I found myself asking hoarsely, hands clenching the fabric of his t-shirt. “Are you okay with living with us?” Two thoughts were left unsaid. _When we’re civilians? When we might not understand everything?_  

Kakashi went silent for a moment, hand ceasing its ministrations in my hair. It was as if he was frozen, contemplating something that I didn’t understand just yet. A few minutes passed before both his hands went to my shoulders, pushing me away just a bit for me to look into his silver eyes. To my surprise, a soft blush was on his face, lightly dusting the skin not covered by his mask with a light pink. He stared at me for a few moments, more than enough time to make me fidget, before looking away and coughing into a fist.  

“I-I don’t mind, Tomoko, really.” For once, my mouth and subconsciousness were thinking on the same page, and I couldn’t help but voice it.

“...Really?” I think my voice cracked a little, because Kakashi quickly turned his head to look at me with a half-lidded, almost exasperated stare.

“I said it’s fine, didn’t I?”

That did it. Somehow, my worrywart side finally decided to subside, and a small shaky smile came across my face. For some reason, I found myself giggling into my pajama sleeve, causing my friend to blink. “Wh-What’s so funny?” Kakashi demanded, crossing his arms against his chest. The gesture only made me giggle even more, getting close to full-blown laughter. It was quite the surprising role-reversal from our time at the Chunin Exams, since I was the one laughing now at a flustered Kakashi. “…Tomoko,” he said dryly, expression literally saying ‘ _What the hell_.’  

In response, I found myself grinning and jumping on him in a tackle-hug. Somehow, we ended up crashing to the floor with Kakashi on the bottom - again - and I couldn’t help the large smile I sent in his direction. “ _Oof_ … why, Tomoko?” he deadpanned, raising an eyebrow at me. “I thought I said, ‘No tackle-hugs.’” 

 _Oh yeah, this is probably the second time I broke the ‘tackle-hug’ rule, huh?_  

_…Eh, whatever._

For some reason, I found myself not caring. “Why not, Kakashi-kun?” I hummed, laying my head against his chest happily.

Kakashi sighed, the motion making his chest inflate slightly. Despite his supposed exasperation, I could feel his hands land on the small of my back, returning the hug. “…Could I get a real reason for once?” 

I ended up speaking honestly, getting up to look into my best friend’s silver eyes. “I’m just glad you’re my best friend, Kakashi-kun. I love you a lot, you know?”

Yes, stare at me all you want, I like saying, ‘I love you’ to friends and family. Sue me. 

Kakashi blinked before a soft red replaced the previous pink on his face, looking away for a moment, a hand to his masked mouth. “…You’re seriously weird, Tomoko.”

“…Says the guy wearing a mask all the time.” I just went back to lying on top of my best friend, lightly snuggling him. Despite my retort, I decided to keep one thought to myself with a warm smile, just listening to his heartbeat.

 _But I love you anyway, you weird ninja_ . _No matter what kind of shit you’ll be getting yourself into._

If I had a choice between Kakashi or any other ninja for a friend, I wouldn’t even have to think about it.

No matter what, it would always be Kakashi. He’s my best friend, and honestly, I love him more than anything.

…Apparently I was basking in the moment a bit _too_ much though since Kakashi groaned, hand to his face. “…Though, Tomoko, when are you going to get off me? You’re a bit heavy.” 

Whoops.

* * *

 

It took about a week for Sakumo-san and Kakashi to take all their possessions and move into the main house with us. I honestly was not expecting Sakumo-san to agree to Dad’s lighthearted proposition, but when Dad and I decided to visit the Hatake Household for once, the situation was pretty bad. 

Sakumo-san wasn’t kidding when he said the villagers were really angry. During the one night they were away, resting at Nagareboshi with us after the concert, apparently some people thought it was a good time to _vandalize_ most of the house, with windows broken, walls covered with offensive graffiti, and flowers scattered mockingly around the vicinity. 

Seriously, how _vengeful_ could someone get? 

Even if I was in the Naruto-verse with its over-exaggerated standards, this was just _fucked up_. Excuse my language, but I’m being serious here. Some of the messages in particular really stuck with me before Dad gently pushed me away from looking, and even then, I could tell he was angry too. The tight grip he had on my hand was more than enough proof.

* * *

 

 _Thanks for starting a war,_ **_coward._ ** 

 _If you had followed the rules,_ **_my son would have still been here!_ **

**_Die,_ ** _you cowardly mongrel!_

* * *

 

That day, I was surprisingly grateful for the sudden appearance of Jiraiya at the Hatake Compound, looking confused at the lack of Hatakes around. The Pervy Sage turned serious once noticing us with our cleaning supplies, and smiled gently. 

“By chance, do you two know where Sakumo is?”

Dad was the first one to respond, taking a step closer to the taller man with a sympathetic expression. “He’s actually staying at Nagareboshi with us, Jiraiya-sama. Kakashi-kun’s with him too — my wife and I thought it would be good for them considering…well…” he trailed off, motioning to the Hatake Compound with his free hand.

Jiraiya immediately frowned, a vein present on his face while facing the house. “Those damn villagers…they really need to stop with the rumor mill.” I could see his fist clench and unclench tightly at his side before he turned back to us, black eyes shining in concern. “…Is Sakumo doing alright?”

I decided to put my two cents in. “He’s alright, Jiraiya-sama, I think Mom’s with him right now.”

“Huh.” The Sage blinked before looking down at me with a much kinder smile, kneeling down to my height. “I heard from a few birds that it was because of you that he’s doing better —  is that true, Tomoko-chan?" 

I blinked. _Does information really get around that fast?_  

“Um…yes?” For some reason, the Sannin’s unblinking stare really made me uncomfortable. It felt as though he was _searching_ for something just by looking at me. But what was it?

This little staring contest continued for a few seconds before Jiraiya smiled again and placed a large hand on my head. The red lines on his cheeks considerably wrinkled from his large grin, and from the close distance, I could see the whites of his teeth. Eh? 

“Thank you, Tomoko-chan.” I found myself blinking in confusion again, tilting my head. Out of anything the Pervy Sage was going to say, I wasn’t expecting _that_. “Your music really does do wonders for us old geezers. So, thank you.”

A blush covered my cheeks as I found myself sputtering from the embarrassment. It felt _weird_ being thanked by one of the greatest Konoha ninja. Really, to be thanked by the teacher to Pain, Minato-san, _and_ Naruto? Whoa. “U-um, you’re welcome?”

Apparently, my squeaky voice hit _some_ nerve in the Pervy Sage since he burst out laughing, actually tripping over his own sandals to land on his back. This really didn’t help my embarrassment at all, since my voice continued to raise its pitch. “Wh-what’s so funny~?”

To my dismay, Dad started to laugh too, dropping whatever cleaning supplies he had on the ground to join Jiraiya in the whole laugh fest, holding his stomach. “J-Jiraiya-sama~! Daddy~!” I found myself protesting, face hot.

_What the heck did I do?!_

“I-I’m sorry, Tomoko-chan!” Dad sputtered between hearty laughs. “It’s just — _pfft_ — your voice - _haha_!”

“BWAHAHA! Your daughter’s _amazing_ , Judai! God damn did you hit the jackpot!” Jiraiya bellowed, feet flailing in the air. “First you get a smoking hot wife, and then get an adorable daughter! God man, you’re so _damn lucky_! Imagine how things will be in the next 10 years!”

…I freely admit. I didn’t know whether or not to take this whole ordeal as just a compliment or an insult. My face was surely the color of a tomato by now. “Daddy, could we just get into cleaning Kakashi-kun’s house now?” I found myself deadpanning, cheeks puffed in protest. “The graffiti isn’t going to go away by itself.”

In the end, I only had to wait a few more minutes for Dad and Jiraiya to regain their composure, shakily standing up to get any last laughs out of their systems.

I politely kept a thought to myself.

_Why does everyone seem to laugh at something I do when I don’t mean to do it?_

Dad wiped away some tears from his eyes before happily grinning at me. “Alright, sweetie, let’s get to it then so we can head home and help Mommy out, okay?”

“Okay, Daddy…” I found myself answering dryly. Honestly, it was still morning, and Dad’s enthusiasm still had yet to rub off on me.    

In the end, even with Jiraiya’s help, it took about 3-4 hours to properly clean up everything. And honestly, those villagers did _way too much_. We had to replace at least 3 windows, clean 5-6 full walls of graffiti, and sweep up almost a _ton_ of flowers. I would like to say we had our hands full, but just cleaning it up wasn’t enough. We had to figure out a way to stop whoever was vandalizing the house _while_ Sakumo-san was recuperating at Nagareboshi, and Dad and I both knew that we couldn’t be at the Hatake Compound 24/7. Not to mention, there was _no_ way I was going to let Kakashi live alone — even if he insisted. As his best friend, I have to look out for him when he’s not on the field!

Luckily, Jiraiya actually took that chance to offer his assistance. I never thought I would be saying this, but thank goodness we had Jiraiya.

“How about I live here and handle the place for a while?” Was what he said.

Massive pervert, very good friend.

Apparently, the Sage had just gotten back from the front lines at Iwa, and since he wanted a break, it provided more than enough free time to properly care for the household while Sakumo-san and Kakashi were gone. We essentially hit two birds with one stone — Jiraiya got a temporary safe house to live in while staying in Konoha, before heading out again, mind you, and the house itself would be protected from any negative influence until Sakumo-san thought it would be time to move back.

Since then, it was really moving every possession the Hatake family had to our main house in Nagareboshi. I always thought that Kakashi was frugal with his possessions, but considering ninja and their paranoia, we ended up carrying a _lot_ of weapon caches over aside from the usual changes of clothes and personal possessions. I was not expecting there to be so many _traps_ and _weapons_ lying around in almost every corner of the Compound, sitting in places that seemed to be just too obvious at first glance.

…Eh. Ninja are really cautious, I guess. 

Once everything was carried over, it was just really settling into a new routine. Kakashi and Sakumo-san ended up taking the guest room we had in the main house, landing next to my room in the main hallway. With that, they basically became another part of the family.

During weekends, if the two weren’t out on missions, we all would end up sharing meals, talking over the kitchen table on how our days went. The adults (namely, Mom, Dad, and Sakumo-san) would usually talk amongst themselves while Kakashi and I would normally eat in silence, usually piping up if we wanted to talk to each other. Since I usually went to the library to study in the weekends, I shockingly found Kakashi following me and reading right next to me, usually pointing out something I missed in my personal notes and teaching me some small things (think history, clan politics, etc). At the same time, every now and then, Minato-san and Kushina-san would stop by to have a full group dinner together, making the house a bit more lively. 

Then, during the weekdays, normally, I would see Kakashi heading out with Minato-san on a mission. To my surprise, Sakumo-san decided to go to Lord Hokage to take a break from the front lines, requesting to teach at the Academy. In all honesty, I wasn’t expecting this at all, since I thought he might just head out on missions to try regaining his honor that way, but when asking the man about it, he just smiled and patted my head. 

“You were the one who told me to repent for my mistakes and just live, Tomoko-chan. I just thought on it and decided that the best way to repay for those lost lives would be just to raise the next generation, making sure there aren’t any casualties.” 

It was difficult initially, though. I can’t deny that, no matter how much sugar I poured on it. Despite my efforts, Kakashi became a bit distant from Sakumo-san, whether from the war or something else, usually exchanging a few words before heading out with Minato-san. At the same time, Sakumo-san usually came home during weekdays with stress bags under his eyes, too tired to even offer more than a small smile at me before retiring to his room. Mom and Dad themselves were a bit more exhausted than usual after a work day at Nagareboshi, but I think it’s because some of the regulars just haven’t been showing up anymore after Sakumo-san and Kakashi started living with us. In fact, Nagareboshi has been losing customers even with my usual piano routine. 

It’s been hard on everyone.

What? Why are you looking at me?

Oh.

…Then again, I’m not really exempt from this either. Recently, a lot of the regulars coming for songs have been a lot more tense, and I think I’m really becoming a therapist or someone to just vent to because a lot of adult ninja, excluding the usual regulars such as Obito and Rin, were complaining to me.

* * *

_“If only the White Fang didn’t do what he did, we wouldn’t be in war right now!”_

_“Tomoko-chan, I just don’t understand what you see in that boy, we don’t know if he’s going to end up being like his foolish father!”_

_“Have you thought about hanging out with us, Tomoko-chan? We could give you a better time than those Hatake freaks.”_

* * *

 

What was really upsetting about the whole thing was that a lot of complaints were specifically directed at Kakashi and Sakumo-san. Initially, I tried to not think on it, since I knew that it was their opinions and that we weren’t supposed to backtalk customers. But as time went on and the complaints just continued to increase in amount, I found myself getting a bit fed up too. What’s worse was that many of the regulars were civilians just like I was, blaming Sakumo-san simply for saving his comrades and ruining the mission.

To be honest, I was just really pissed with the whole scenario. It took all I had to not voice the following:

 _This whole ‘scapegoat’ thing with Sakumo-san at the center is really just annoying. Why not try to reevaluate your own lives if you have enough damn time to complain about the actions of others, you ignorant assholes!? And don’t bring Kakashi-kun into this!_  

If anybody noticed however, no one really commented on it. If anything, the anger simply made me play the piano a lot more fiercely, causing a lot of my song choice to go to a lot more fast-paced and serious tracks, including _God Knows_ and _Only my Railgun_.

Which was why it surprised me so much one winter day when the Third Hokage himself walked into Nagareboshi. 

…Yes, I’m completely serious. He actually walked in.  

* * *

 

It was honestly a slow morning when starting that specific day. I was wearing the RWBY kimono dress again, relying on the dark black and red colors to provide warmth from the cold winds coming into the cafe. I was just playing _Aerith’s Theme_ from Final Fantasy 7 to just warm up when he walked in.  

If anything, the entrance itself wasn’t that great. He just walked in like any other new customer, looking around curiously. I only really noticed his specific entrance because every single customer just stopped talking. Any whispers I originally heard went away in just one second, and Nagareboshi was dead silent with the exception of my piano music.

Once I finished my current song, my ears caught the soft sound of a chair being pulled over. At the time, I didn’t think much on it and just turned softly, only to catch the ‘Fire’ character on the red-white hat, the long white robe, and a warm smile.

“Hello,” Hiruzen Sarutobi said gently, brown eyes warm with kindness.

Meep. Just, just, _meep._

It took a few moments to respond, and by then, I was sure an embarrassed blush was on my face. “H-hello, Hokage-sama, sir.”  

Apparently my stuttered response threw him off guard because the Hokage simply chuckled, smile growing on his face. Honestly, I was just shocked at his appearance. From my past memories, I was used to the Third having gray hair and many wrinkles from the canon Naruto, but this Third was considerably younger with a full head of brown hair, a small goatee, and very few stress lines on his tanned face. Then again, we were in the era of the Third Shinobi World War, so he was probably in his early 50s at this point.

After a few seconds, the Third Hokage calmed down enough to look at me with a kind gaze. “…Tomoko-chan, right?” I just nodded hesitantly to confirm my identity with him. “I’ve been hearing from some of my fellow shinobi that you play wonderful piano, so I was wondering if you could play this old man a song.”

I blinked in confusion.

_Does he have another motive in mind…?_

Outwardly, I tried to smile. “O-of course I can, Hokage-sama, sir. What kind of song would you like?”

The Third’s smile then turned somewhat mysterious, a small glint in his brown eyes. “How about you play something that represents how you view the world?”

_Okay, now isn’t that strangely specific. And philosophical._

“...Um, Hokage-sama, do you mean the _entire world_ , or the _shinobi_ world, or the _civilian_ world?”

If anything, the glint in his eye simply grew in intensity at my question, making my suspicions skyrocket. Oh dear. “Entire world sounds just about right, Tomoko-chan.”

_Okay...he’s onto something….but what is it?_

If I could, I would’ve liked to think about it longer, but it looked like the _entirety_ of Nagareboshi was now focused on the two of us, and I had to play the song sooner or later.

Double Meep.

Still. _My view on the entire world here, huh?_ When thinking about it, there was only really one melody I knew that fit. With a soft sigh, I smiled at the village leader before turning in my seat to face the familiar black and white keys. “Alright, Hokage-sama, one worldview song coming up.” 

_In the end, this world in particular has a lot of tragedy, doesn’t it?_

Without even thinking, the piece came together in my mind from the various memories to play the tale of strange magical girls, each part specifically representing parts of my feelings on the whole Narutoverse — my new, rather messed up, home.

 _Conturbatio. The beginning of the end_. In my mind swam the images of two girls, one pink and the other blue, offered a choice to make a wish in exchange for power.

Me, having to choose between the life of a ninja or a civilian. In the end, I chose the civilian route as a way to honor my original origins and feelings from my past life, but even now, I still doubted my decision at times. Was it the right choice to forsake such power when having it meant I could possibly help out on the battlefield?

 _Sis Puella Magica. Uncertainty and struggle._ Those same girls, facing powerful monsters and questioning their own choices about having the power to fight them. 

Me, questioning my place and what I was doing in this life. Was I really doing enough for the people here? Was I really influencing this time enough so that Team Minato could possibly avoid the fate they had? I had saved Sakumo-san, but at what cost?

 _Surgam Identidem. Fighting hopelessly only to fall into despair_. The pink-haired girl, being forced to watch her blue friend transform into the same monsters they were fighting, unable to do anything about it.  

Me, having to watch so many ninja suffer, including Sakumo-san and Kakashi, and just wondering if my influence was helping them at all. Even though I played an entire concert for the Hatake family, the negative thoughts surrounding them had yet to go away, and the scene of the trashed Hatake compound was proof of that. People still harbored anger and despair towards them for what Sakumo-san did, no matter how much I attempted to comfort them with music. The piano could do so much, but would it really make a difference on the battlefield?

Was I really living my life to the fullest and truly helping out others like I wanted to?

Did I really make the right choice for myself and others by not becoming a ninja? 

Despite all my negative thoughts, the piano keys almost crooned under my touch. And soon enough, I found myself smiling in response when reaching the finale. 

 _Credens Justitiam. Finding hope through the bonds with others._ The pink-haired girl, selflessly sacrificing herself so that her friend could at least pass in peace, preventing the despair that came with the monstrous transformation.  

Me, finding new people to love and care for after my previous losses.

Mom, Dad, Sakumo-san, Kushina-san, Minato-san, Obito-kun, Rin-chan.

…Kakashi. 

They were the people I found happiness in playing piano for. Whenever I was down, they were the ones to pick me up and just reaffirm my original thoughts on playing the piano. They showed me that I was really making a difference, and that my work in Nagareboshi was worthwhile. 

They showed me that I was loved and cared for as much as I did for them.

They showed me that I belonged here as Hoshino Tomoko. I wasn’t my past self anymore. I was just the Civilian Pianist, Tomoko. And I think that’s enough for now.

It was that thought in mind that I pressed the final key gently in a gorgeous-sounding finale, and by the time the sound faded away in the cold winter winds, my ears registered the sound of clapping.

_Huh? What the—?_

I found myself opening my eyes, which when playing the piano, were closed before, to only see **everyone** in Nagareboshi Cafe standing up and giving their proud ovations.

Oh goodness.

It wasn’t just the Third clapping. I could see all the regulars at the bar, some of which I hadn’t seen since the Hatake duo started living with us, grinning and cheering alongside Dad, who was the loudest apparently with his whooping. On the other side, I could see customers I had never seen visit before, looks of awe in their eyes while clapping, Mom in the center of the crowd with a soft, happy smile on her face. In the background, I could see Minato-san and Kushina-san, standing together and looking rather proud themselves. Sakumo-san was about an arm's-length away from the two, a content look in his eye while clapping.  Even at the sidelines, I could see Obito’s orange goggles, Rin’s purple tattoos, Guy’s bright green jumpsuit, Jiraiya’s red line markings, and…

Wait. Wait just a second.

I blinked. _A black mask?_

In confusion, I blinked again, looking around before my gaze landed on it again. Silver eyes and spiky silver hair.

Happiness flooded my entire heart cavity if possible. _Kakashi._ He was literally in the center of the cafe at the very forefront of the large crowd in front of the stage, clapping encouragingly with a fond look in his eye. It was — quite honestly —  the most relaxed I had ever seen him.

From the joy going through my entire system, I had to take a moment to stop looking like a shocked fish, closing my mouth and fidgeting with the hem of my kimono dress. It felt like the right time to curtsey, but to be honest? My feet were kinda shaking too much to let me. Whoops.

Still. Once the clapping subsided, the Third simply gave me a warm, almost wise smile, getting up from his seat.

“Thank you, Tomoko-chan. I think everyone in here can agree that the song you played was something we all needed these days.” For once this entire day, the Third looked more like a kind old man than a village leader, gently dusting off his robes before stepping off the stage, his back facing me. To my surprise, he didn’t walk away immediately, letting me see just his back before speaking again. “Keep playing that piano, dear. I’m sure it will continue to help more shinobi as time goes on.” He turned to look at me for a moment with a kind smile before gently walking away.

_Okay. Okay, calm down. Whoa. I just got approval from the Professor and Third Hokage — the village leader!_

I found myself quickly standing up from the piano bench to bow in the Hokage’s direction, yelling out a quick response. I had to at least tell him something after all that. “No, thank _you_ , Hokage-sama for having me! I-I’ll do my best!”

In response, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned back to look at me with a surprised look in his eyes before a hearty laugh left his lips, turning back to walk out the cafe doors. “I’ll be counting on that enthusiasm, my dear~!”

With a swish of his white robes, the Third Hokage left, leaving me standing on the stage by myself in a moment of plain shock.

_That...just happened, didn’t it?_

And then people started to swarm me.

“Tomoko-chan, that was amazing! Is it okay if you could take a song request?" 

“No man, let me have a turn! Tomoko-chan, could you play a song for me?”

“No, me first!”

“Tomoko-nee-chan, could you teach me how to play?”

“Now, now, sweetie, Tomoko-nee’s busy with other customers. It might be good to talk to her later.”

“But, mommy! That song sounded _really_ pretty. I want to learn now!”

Oh gosh. Just, _gosh._ Now I know how celebrities feel. There were just too many faces to where it felt like I was a _museum exhibit_. I found myself about to trip over my own boots before a warm hand smelling like pines landed on my shoulder.

 _Kakashi_.

“You’ve really outdone yourself, Tomoko,” he commented dryly behind me, looking at the rather over-eager crowd.  

Honestly, a part of me felt rather claustrophobic from all the people surrounding me, so I just glanced at my best friend helplessly. “I know, so could I get a little help?” I found myself squeaking.

Kakashi blinked for a moment before sighing.

“Don’t blame me if you get sick on the way out.” To my surprise, he pulled me close enough so that we were shoulder-to-shoulder before making a hand-sign with his remaining hand. “Sorry to whoever’s asking for Tomoko, but I’ll be borrowing her for a bit.”

Before I could even ask ‘What,’ a large puff of smoke filled my vision to where I ended up coughing a little.

_Ugh…He just used the Body Flicker Technique on me, didn’t he?_

No wonder my stomach felt like it was flipping on itself — I don’t think that the technique’s supposed to be used on a non-chakra person. Or at least, a civilian who has no clue on how to weave the most basic of hand-signs. Joy. 

“…Kakashi-kun, you _suck_ sometimes.” I muttered dryly, holding back any thoughts of throwing up. It wasn’t really the best time to do it anyway, since we somehow teleported to the very roof of Nagareboshi. Like, _whoa!_

Since it was still early morning, I could easily see the sun shining high in the sky, complementing the bright blue canvas it was in.

It was, by far, the highest I had ever been in Konoha.

…Then again, I’ve never really tried to go to the top of the Hokage Monument, so I really don’t know what the view up there is like.

Before I could think on it more, Kakashi simply sighed again. He went on to let go of my shoulder, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I told you not to blame me if you got sick. What else did you want me to do in order to get away from there?" 

I blinked, putting a hand to my chin in thought. “…Um…” 

“…” 

Yes. My eyebrow was surely twitching at this point — I was trying to think of something, but nothing was coming up, making me mutter something akin to ‘Um’ or ‘Uh’ to fill in the silence.

“…Tomoko, you really don’t have to think that hard on it.” Kakashi deadpanned dryly after a few minutes, sweatdropping.

Bah. “But I wanted to try proving you wrong for once!” I huffed, pouting. Honestly, this was a matter of personal pride and no one was going to try telling me otherwise.

An eyebrow raising was all I got in response. 

 _Yep, there’s the sassy Kakashi I know_.

With a sigh, I decided to concede defeat. “…Though, you do have a point there.”

“When don’t I?” Kakashi sniped back.

_You dork._

I just glanced at him exasperatedly, throwing my hands up in the air. “I am not going to argue about this with you, Kakashi-kun. Right now, I’m going to hug you and you are going to deal with it, okay?”

The Chunin blinked. “Wait, what—”

I smirked. _Shut-up Hug Number 2!_ In the end, I just pulled him in with an arm to rest my head against his shoulder, sighing. “…Thank you, Kakashi-kun.”

“…This is possibly the weirdest thank you I’ve ever gotten.” Kakashi muttered against my ear. Honestly, I had no clue why he was commenting on this since I already established a hugging routine with him anyway! 

In the end, I just huffed. “…We’re having a moment. Don’t ruin it and just hug me back, okay?”

I could physically feel Kakashi sigh underneath my hold before he reached out to wrap his arms around my torso.

For once, it was nice to have a peaceful moment. And I was happy — just enjoying time with my best friend, avoiding the crowds.

…Hopefully they wouldn’t get too pissed at missing me.


	16. Interlude: Kakashi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anybody or anything except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Kyle Landry's cover of Joe Hisashi's Asian Dream. Tomoko doesn't actually play the song this chapter, but I believe it really fits the mood of this part overall. Please enjoy!
> 
> Dedicated to Frost-Ninja Dragon, now the real Josh, one of my best friends and wonderful consultant to this fanfiction so far. I'm really grateful for all your help, old friend, and I'll continue to rely on you from now on. Love you lots!

_Interlude: Kakashi_

Hoshino Tomoko was…a weird girl.

To Hatake Kakashi, she didn't stand out at all initially. If anything, he probably would've avoided her like the rest of the civilians he passed by on the way to the Ninja Academy. It was only when he had turned 5 and visited Nagareboshi Cafe at the insistence of his dad that he noticed her at all.

Hatake Sakumo had apparently taken an interest in this cafe while he was gone and to be frank, Kakashi didn't understand the charm of the small business at first. If anything, it looked and felt like a normal cafe that catered to both civilians and ninja, welcoming anybody with kindness. There was a dinky little bar with the occasional drinker lounging there, the usual table set-up with many privacy seals lurking around just in case, and civilian servers.

It was only when Sakumo pushed him past the small crowd near the center of the cafe that he saw her.

… _That's a lot of black and red_. For such a casual kimono dress, the girl could've passed off as a small, dark princess with the color scheme. A red hair ribbon marking the right side of her face, a black and red patterned skirt, bright red hoodie, black kimono top and lacy red sleeves, black stockings, heck, even black boots! If not for the occasional splash of grey and red through the obi and skirt itself, Kakashi would've felt the need to avert his eyes from the darkness of it all.

What was much stranger, was what the girl was doing. It was only that moment that his ears picked up the soft melody coming from the girl's direction, one which he never heard before, and when searching for the source, his mouth could've easily dropped.

 _She's playing that song all by herself?!_  If not for his trusted mask, Kakashi was sure he was gaping. The girl looked to be his age, yet there she was, dressed up and playing the large grand piano sitting in the center of the cafe alone. Just from looking at her hands, it was like they were flying over the keys, only providing the gentlest of touches to them to produce the song. Even when straining his hearing in an attempt to pay closer attention, he couldn't even  _hear_  any hesitation in the movement, the music coming out in a smooth and soothing manner, like water in a river.

"Neh, Kakashi," the boy was sure Sakumo was grinning happily. "How about we head up there?"

 _Hell no_ , his mind responded. But for some reason, the words just wouldn't come out. Kakashi attempted to protest wordlessly to make up for the sudden lump in his throat, looking up at Sakumo desperately.

Apparently Sakumo didn't get the hint though, laughing. "Kakashi, you don't have to be shy! She takes song requests—might as well go up there to celebrate your graduation from the Academy!"

_I don't need that kind of thing—_

But Sakumo still pushed him up to the stage anyway, almost forcing him to sit in the chair next to the piano, cheerily greeting the girl. Luckily, they came up when she just finished her most recent song, and when turning to face them, Kakashi got an eyeful of bright blue.

Her eyes reminded him of a wide blue sky, sparkling with different elements of emotion.

…Apparently she was spacing out though, because when Sakumo got her attention, an embarrassed blush painted her cheeks.

"I-I'm sorry about that!"  _She has a really high-pitched voice for a 5 year old._ "Y-Yeah, that's me. What would you like me to play?"

"Just something to celebrate my son's graduation from the Academy!" Why did Sakumo have to sound so  _embarrassing_  when pointing that out? Kakashi was sure that his father was humming, and honestly, he didn't appreciate the attention, facepalming in an attempt to hide the embarrassment on his face.

"…Dad, enough. Please." Sakumo's whines greeted him in response, and Kakashi could  _feel_  the questioning gazes of the other customers in the cafe on his back.  _By Kami, did he have to bring more attention to them?!_  If he could, Kakashi would've teleported out of the  _entire establishment_ if it meant escaping this situation.

To the ninja's surprise, the girl looked even more flustered than he was, sounding a lot more squeaky when speaking up. "Th-Thank you so much, sir. But what kind of song would you and your son want?"

 _Huh? She's asking me?_  Kakashi looked up only to see the girl's inquisitive stare, blue orbs warm with understanding.

When he thought about it, no one else aside from Sakumo looked at him that way.

Before he could say anything though, Sakumo beat him to the punch, humming happily. "Whatever you think fits, alright?"

Kakashi would have beat his head against the piano at this point.  _Why can't Dad let me speak for myself?!_   _I could've said something for once!_

However, the girl looked more contemplative than anything, blinking for a moment before sighing softly to herself and turning back to face the piano. She closed her eyes for a moment, breathing in deeply before opening her mouth again. "Alright then—one celebratory song coming up."

Kakashi couldn't help but notice the solemn look on her face before noticing her hands move.

It was as if she became a different person. Even though Kakashi was sitting right next to her, it was like the girl was no longer a 5-year old child but a professional pianist, playing what could have been a concert-level song without even breaking a sweat. Those same small hands, which were originally fidgeting in her lap, now soared across the keyboard in their own rhythm. Surprisingly, the dark black and red kimono that he initially despised now seemed to really accent the girl's movements, lace shimmering against her wrists to highlight her presence against the white piano keys. The song itself was nothing he had ever heard before, solemn tone mixed with vibrant sound, spun together as though they were telling a story.

The scene was so strange and  _interesting_  that Kakashi couldn't tear his eyes away.

She looked mysteriously beautiful.

Far too soon, the song ended with a strong, final press of a key, and Kakashi found himself jumping at the sight of those blue eyes staring at him again.  _When did—?!_ The once solemn expression was broken with sudden embarrassment, the girl turning pink. "U-Um…h-h-how was that?"

Immediately, all the saliva dried up in Kakashi's mouth and he found himself staring at Sakumo again. The White Fang was surprisingly solemn and serious in his gaze, nodding as if to say, ' _Thank her already!'_

 _What am I supposed to say after all that?!_ Kakashi found himself whining. Luckily, his mouth decided not to voice that thought, and he found himself conceding defeat to Sakumo, turning to face the girl again. For some reason, the confused gaze in her blue eyes only made him more flustered, and he forced himself to look away. "…It was good. Thanks."

To his surprise, the girl giggled. It wasn't one of those mocking laughs that he occasionally heard from his Academy classmates about the dead-last Obito or the squealing laughs of the random fangirl. Instead, it was a soft and honest giggle, almost like the chime of a tinkling bell.

For some reason, he liked the sound of it.

The girl opened her eyes again, black strands of hair framing her face, and with a warm smile, offered her hand to him.

"I'm Hoshino Tomoko, pianist of Nagareboshi Cafe. What's your name?"

* * *

The next time Kakashi saw the girl was during a D-rank mission about 8-9 months later. Honestly, after that little first meeting, Kakashi didn't want to really meet her again. He had already embarrassed himself enough with that whole 'Academy graduation celebration' fiasco, and he didn't want to face that again.

But why? Why did Minato-sensei have to choose a mission where he would have to help out at  _that same cafe_  where she would be?!

"Kakashi-kun! Hey!"

…And why did she have to look so happy at seeing him? The new white and pink kimono dress she was wearing didn't help, since it seemed to accent her bright blue eyes even more than usual. Kakashi used all of his self-control to fight down the infuriating blush on his face to answer.

"…Tomoko? The D-Rank mission was from you?"  _And why does Minato-sensei seem to know you?_  The blond Jounin was actively ruffling the girl's hair with a warm grin, and Tomoko just smiled happily back.

"Well, yeah! My mom was the one who asked though…" And why was she looking in his direction with that beaming smile of hers?! Kakashi could easily feel his cheeks beginning to burn, and he attempted to look away from her, even when finding out the main objective of the mission. Luckily, Minato-sensei could help Hikari-san with replacing the piping, but…

"While I'm doing that, Kakashi, go along with Tomoko-chan to help her set up around here."  _Why did Minato-sensei have to pair me up with her?!_  Kakashi swallowed all of his pride to force a firm reply out, agreeing to the situation at hand. It wouldn't weigh well on his consciousness if he tried to run out right then and there.

Luckily, when Hikari-san was talking to her, he was able to sneak away to the doorway for a few seconds of peace. Unfortunately, this didn't last since Tomoko quickly noticed the lack of his presence beside her, running up to him and grabbing his hand. It took all of Kakashi's self-control to not visibly react, putting on his best poker face and attempting to avoid thinking about the current situation, resulting in his being pulled along by the civilian girl.

 _Her hand's really soft—_ _ **oh shit.**_  Kakashi immediately shot the thought down, shaking his head furiously to rid himself of it.  _God damn it, Kakashi—focus on the mission, not on the hand of a girl!_ Thankfully, Tomoko didn't notice his inner plight, continuing to pull him along almost like a rag doll. Kakashi felt grateful that no one else was around to witness the whole situation, because he knew there would be far too many barbs pointed at him if anyone knew.

He could easily imagine Sakumo laughing at him in that infuriating manner of his. And don't get started on Obito and Guy…

Kakashi swallowed the lump in his throat to focus on the situation at hand. "So, what do you need me to do?"

Tomoko blinked before letting go of his hand (finally), but for some reason, he found himself missing that soft touch and warmth.  _What is wrong with you, Kakashi?! Focus!_  Kakashi instead forced himself to observe Tomoko herself, noticing her counting off her fingers. "Well, normally there's cleaning the tables, setting up the bar over there with any shot glasses or wine cups, washing dishes, sweeping the front yard, restocking drinks, napkins, and glasses from the storage room, setting up the display case in front of the store, um…"

The ninja found himself sweating a little.  _That's way too much._ "You don't have to list everything, Tomoko. Just tell me one thing and I'll do it." The girl blinked and turned to look at him, and Kakashi held back the urge to flinch at the sight of her sheepish blue orbs.

 _Why do I feel so bad all of a sudden?!_  "I-I'm just used to cleaning the piano and helping out Mom and Dad, so this is my first time having to allocate tasks to someone else…" Kakashi immediately decided that Tomoko was just  _weird._ No girl should be able to talk so adorably— _fuck._  The ninja felt the heavy need to pound his head against the nearest wall. If it meant getting this weird heat out of his face, Kakashi didn't really mind losing some brain cells. But it wasn't really the time, and he forced himself to focus on the girl's voice again. "I'm sorry, Kakashi-kun…"

The ninja found himself blinking.  _There's no need to apologize…_  "It's fine, but where is your Dad by the way?" It was a diversion, but Kakashi was completely okay with that. If it meant focusing on something else, then he was fine with it. Not to mention, the cafe did seem a bit empty without the tall man's presence (considering he was apparently glaring daggers into Kakashi's back the last time he was here).

Tomoko frowned again, huffing softly through her nose. "Sick with a fever. He's actually upstairs, resting up," she sighed softly to herself, and Kakashi couldn't help but notice how her petite shoulders slumped forward a bit before she straightened herself, looking at him with a sheepish smile. "Is it okay if you could help me with cleaning the front of Nagareboshi then?"

To his shock, he nodded without even thinking, wordlessly taking the duster she offered him and finding himself sitting on top of a large ladder, facing the large Nagareboshi Cafe sign and dusting every crevice in sight. The amount of dust on the board was enough to tickle Kakashi's nose to the point of almost sneezing if not for his mask, but the ninja found himself not really caring. If it meant not having to talk to the girl sweeping the front of the shop below him, then he could take a few sneezes.

"So, Kakashi-kun?"  _God damn it._ He grunted in response, frown finding itself on his face.  _Does she have to speak up now?!_  His palms just  _stopped_  being so sweaty…! "Do you need any help up there?"  _Wait...she talked just to see if I was okay?_ For some reason, Kakashi felt strangely happy at the thought, quickly yelling a reply back before jumping off the ladder to land in front of her.

The ninja found some strange satisfaction in hearing the surprised squeak Tomoko let out at his landing. If she continued to react like that, Kakashi could get used to it.  _And hopefully I can get over this weird feeling in my chest._ "Is there anything else you need me to do?"

Tomoko blinked, putting a hand to her chin in thought, closing her eyes. For once, she was silent, barely moving, and Kakashi felt somewhat useless just standing there. Luckily, it only took a few seconds before her eyes opened again and she looked up at him. For once, the shine in her blue orbs didn't really scare him as much, appearing more curious and questioning. "I think I have something. Think you could check over the grand piano with me?"

Kakashi blinked before nodding. For once, his body and mind were in agreement with one another. The memory of the girl playing that gorgeous song flowed through his head, and he couldn't help but feel curious, following her back into the cafe and sitting down next to her near the piano.  _What is she going to do?_  He watched her uncover the piano keys and gently push the piano cover away, eyes following the contours of pink lace accenting her wrists. "So what are we checking the piano for?"

Immediately, Kakashi regretted asking because Tomoko faced him again with that sparkly, happy glint in her eye, warm smile on her face. A soft pink covered her cheeks, and Kakashi could swear time froze at that moment. "Well, I was actually hoping to play a new song for you and get your opinion on it, Kakashi-kun."

 _Wait, she wants to play it just for_ _ **me**_ _?_  The ninja felt strangely honored.

Apparently he took too long to formulate a response since Tomoko blinked before stuttering, averting her gaze before looking back up at him hesitantly. "B-By chance, is that okay?"

Kakashi didn't even have to think on a response. "I don't mind. Go ahead." A sense of pride filled his chest at the sight of the girl's beaming smile back, and for once, he didn't attempt to deny the light happiness in his heart. Tomoko turned to face the piano again, and once more, a beautiful melody sounded at her touch. Kakashi found himself leaning back against his chair and closing his eyes, any sense of tension leaving his shoulders. Unlike the first song she had played for him so long ago, this one was considerably more fast-paced and serious, sounding considerably intense but still retaining the soft touch the girl was known for.

It felt like a melody that perfectly described his life as a Konoha ninja.

_Does she actually understand more than she lets on?_

Near the middle of the song, Kakashi opened his eyes to observe the girl near him. Tomoko didn't even look deterred at the fast pacing of the song, hands gently flying over the keys with a relaxed expression on her face. Even with the long kimono sleeves, they never once got stuck in the piano keys, shifting gently against her skin while she continued to play. The white hair ribbon stood out in her straight black hair, accenting the natural pink of her cheeks.

From up close, Tomoko appeared breathtaking.

… _Wait, what?_  Far too soon, the song had ended and the girl was looking at him again. Kakashi held back the urge to scoot away, putting on his best poker face to deal with her gaze. Before he could say anything though, Tomoko smiled gently, lips lightly curled to show the dimples in her cheeks.

"Neh, Kakashi-kun? You're always welcome here at Nagareboshi Cafe, okay?"

_**Huh?** _

Surprise went through him like a tidal wave as Tomoko continued to speak. "If you want a song to be played, I'll always be here to play it for you because you're my friend, alright?"

Kakashi found a lump forming in his throat in response.

_I'm her friend…? Even though I haven't talked to her in over 8-9 months?_

Apparently he took too much time thinking on the whole ordeal because Tomoko began to panic, visible distress showing on her face. "I-I mean," her hands twisted the hem of her skirt, cheeks bright pink. "I always thought we were friends after you came in that one time with your dad andsinceyoucameandhelpedoutatNagareboshi, Ithought-"

 _She's panicking too much._ "Tomoko." At the sound of her name, the pianist clammed up, averting her gaze to the side worriedly. Kakashi found himself sighing.  _Ah, what the hell._ He held back the burning feeling on his cheeks as much as he could, looking towards the side himself before responding. "It's fine. I'll take you up on that offer sometime."

The girl immediately looked up, blue eyes wide with hope. "S-So, wait—we're friends?"  _Does she even have to ask?_  Kakashi held back the instinctive scoff in his throat, continuing to look away from Tomoko's expectant gaze.

 _...I wouldn't mind being friends with you, dummy._ "Y-yeah."

A sense of foreboding immediately filled his chest at the sight of Tomoko grinning so widely, and the next thing she said instantly put him on high alert. "Kakashi-kun, can I hug you right now?"

 _...Wait,_ _ **the fuck?!**_  "W-What?! W-Wait a second—" Too late. The girl had already barrelled into him, and Kakashi could clearly say one thing.

_**Ow.** _

Who knew such a small girl had so much  _power_ in her? If not for the chair, Kakashi could've clearly fallen to the ground of the stage and hit his head.

And yet, for some reason, he didn't mind the weight on his front. If anything, his nose could pick up the faint scent of lotus flowers and rosemary. He never expected such a strange combination to smell so  _pleasant._

Hoshino Tomoko was…interesting.

But Kakashi just couldn't ignore the large presence on top of him and sighed. "...Tomoko, can you please get off me now?"

* * *

Soon enough, Kakashi found himself visiting Nagareboshi Cafe on almost a daily basis. Initially, it wasn't much. If he had free time after a mission or training with Minato-sensei, Kakashi wandered into the cafe, usually to greet Tomoko herself before requesting a song. If he felt hungry, he just ordered miso soup with eggplant, and he quickly discovered Hikari-san made his favorite much better than his father.

…Might as well stick around for the food and not just for the music.

But no matter what time it was or how many people there were in the cafe, Tomoko always gave him the same warm smile.

"Hey, Kakashi-kun, you here for the usual?"

She never really asked anything more, usually getting up to give him a hug before sitting back down to play something. (Kakashi still felt a bit weirded out by her hugging habit, though…) Even if he gave a vague answer, she always complied with his request by choosing a different song every time he visited, whether it was soft and slow or intense and fast-paced. To be frank, Kakashi never expected to enjoy sitting down and listening to piano so much, but there was something about Tomoko's music that made the activity enjoyable.

Those times of silence were parts of the day that Kakashi found himself looking forward to every morning.

Tomoko never really asked anything more than she needed to, and a majority of the time, she just let the piano speak for her.

Sure, they never talked in those moments, only really communicating through the sound of the piano strings, but Kakashi felt like he really knew her personally and she him.

Well, they always did say music speaks to the heart.

It just surprised him how close he was getting to the civilian girl. Even with the privacy seals around, Kakashi normally wouldn't give out details on his shinobi lifestyle to other people, civilians included.

But Tomoko was different. He quickly found out how easy it was to talk to her about some issues in his life, whether it was his frustration with training or just complaining about the copious amount of D-rank missions, and no matter what, Tomoko just listened.

She didn't really attempt to interrupt him at all, giving an ear to his problems before lightly interjecting with a bit of her own advice. It wasn't much, but Kakashi honestly appreciated the gesture.

"Well, Kakashi-kun, I can understand your frustrations, but maybe you need to just relax for a second. I'm sure you're progressing just fine - these things just take time, so results won't show immediately."

"D-ranks are unfortunately a given part of a Genin life, Kakashi-kun. And hey, with more time in the village means more time to get more training in so you can be prepared for the days you do head out of Konoha."

No one else really tried to do that aside from Minato-sensei and Sakumo anyway. And he still wasn't sure about other ninja his age considering that most of his age group was still in the Academy.

That was why it surprised him that Tomoko looked so  _worried_ when he told her about the Chunin Exams one afternoon. Kakashi just wanted to let her know that he wouldn't be seeing her for the next week or two due to training and going through the Exams, but why was her frown not going away?

It wasn't like he would be going away forever…

"It just feels really early, Kakashi-kun. I mean, no offense to anybody, but why would they need you to become Chunin now? You're only 6…"

 _Why do you have to look so_ _ **sad**_   _when saying that?_  Kakashi found himself sighing. Not only was Tomoko a hugger, but she was a  _worrywart_  too? He didn't know whether to feel happy at the idea she cared that much about him or just plain weirded out.

It wasn't like he was going to  _die_  or anything.

But then why did her blue eyes seem be so  _deep_  with some unsaid meaning? Why did he get the feeling that she knew so much more than she let on?

For once, Kakashi pushed those thoughts to the side to reach out and pat the girl's head, huffing. "I'll be fine, Tomoko," his voice was considerably gentle in tone, and he couldn't help but relish in touching the girl's hair, because it was surprisingly  _soft_. "Honestly, Dad's been talking about how there's something going on between the Five Great Shinobi Countries, and that's why the Chunin Exams this year are specifically Konoha-local—so, I shouldn't have to deal with too much stuff. Quit wasting your time worrying about me."

Because a worried look didn't fit the girl in front of him. Tomoko shouldn't have to look so sad.

Even then, Kakashi knew that he wanted the girl to at least have some semblance of happiness.

He didn't want one of his few sanctuaries to go away.

In response, the girl blinked, surprise present in her blue orbs before she sighed, a defeated smile on her lips before looking up at him again. "Just promise me you'll come back safe and sound, okay? I'll play a full concert for you when you get back, Chunin promotion or not." To his surprise, Tomoko offered her pinky to him.

… _Really?_  Kakashi didn't really want to stop touching the girl's hair, but considering how hopeful she looked with her blue eyes wide with anticipation, he knew he had to give a response.  _This feels really silly._ Despite his thoughts on the whole thing, Kakashi swallowed whatever pride he had to link his pinky with hers, marking it as a promise.  _There's no way I'm not going to come back._ "I promise, Tomoko. Just make sure it's a good concert."

Tomoko smiled happily in response, hints of white peeking through her lips, and Kakashi swore the cafe felt significantly brighter.  _Did she always smile so brightly?_ "Of course! But I'm going to hug you now, okay?"

 _ **Oh no**_ **.** The ninja's heart dropped to his stomach, panic filling his system. He  _knew_  that energetic, happy tone better than anyone. "W-Wait, now?!"  _Don't tell me she's going to tackle-hug me again?!_

"Yes now! It's a hug for good luck!"  _By Kami, why did she have to look so happy just saying it?!_  Kakashi could've swore the girl was  _sparkling_.

"I don't need good luck!"  _Please don't jump me,_ _ **please don't jump me**_ _._

"Too bad — I've giving it anyway!"

 _Oh_   _ **FU**_ — Tomoko tackled him again, and apparently had enough force to knock them both down to the floor of the stage. Kakashi groaned, hand to his face while the girl on top of him laughed happily, ignoring all the amused onlookers.

_How did I get in this mess again?_

* * *

It quickly became apparent that Hoshino Tomoko was becoming a consistent force in his life. Whether by volition or not, Kakashi almost always saw her every day, and he just didn't know how to feel about it.

First, there was Minato-sensei bringing her along to see the finals of the Chunin Exams, even though Judai-san made it  _really_  apparent that he didn't approve when Kakashi first met him.

Kakashi pretended to not notice Minato-sensei's flinch at the sound of Judai's name that day, preferring to focus on the sheepish civilian girl in front of him.

"Well, Daddy let me go so here I am?" her high-pitched voice didn't really help matters, and Kakashi found himself sighing again.

_What am I going to do with you, Tomoko?_

The hug she gave him after the whole match  _did_  feel nice though since it wasn't the usual tackle.

And don't get started on the whole concert she gave due to her promise — if Kakashi could summarize the experience in just a few words, he could easily say that it was one of the best performances Tomoko ever gave him thus far. And to be frank, he was grateful that she was his friend because that concert was worth all the sweat and blood from the Chunin Exams.

… _Friend, huh?_  When thinking about it, Kakashi liked the sound of it.

At least she wasn't always on the battlefield and seeing blood, therefore keeping her innocent happiness and allowing him to relax in her presence. Heck, even the matches he had with Guy were a bit more bearable if it meant he could make her laugh.

She just was that important to him.

That's why when Sakumo suddenly came home one winter evening, not even talking to him and locking himself in his room that Kakashi knew that he had to talk to her.

_Tomoko should be able to help with this!_

… _I hope._

Even with that thought in mind, the words just wouldn't leave his mouth. Tomoko kept giving him the same smile as always as the days passed, and a part of him just didn't want to ruin that for her. She had already done a lot for him by taking his requests every day and listening to his complaints about life.

He didn't want to burden her anymore than he already had.

Yet Tomoko noticed what was going on anyway, grabbing his face to force him to look into her worried blue eyes.

"Kakashi-kun, we've been friends for almost 3 years now. Don't put it off as nothing, okay? You're my best friend, and I'm just worried about you. Don't take it as pity or anything like that, alright? Because I chose to care about you—I chose to worry about you. So, don't take it as some kind of obligatory sympathy—because I chose to become your friend and be with you, alright? So, it's my choice to ask you and try to help you."

That did it. All of his carefully built walls, made to hold back any emotion, immediately crumbled just at Tomoko's words. Anybody other than the civilian girl wouldn't have been able to touch it, yet just her words alone made Kakashi collapse. … _Why is only you that makes me like this?_

For the first time in years, Kakashi openly cried. He cried about all the rumors circulating around the village, about how his father wasn't talking to him anymore, and how Minato-sensei just didn't seem to be around enough to help.

The thing is, Tomoko didn't say anything. She didn't comment on how his tears were staining her kimono dress or how it seemed so sudden to both of them. All the girl did was pull him into a warm hug, gently humming into his ear and stroking his hair.

For once, Kakashi felt  _safe_.

Despite this, there was a small voice in the back of his head, just questioning  _why._

Why did he feel so close to her? Why was it only Tomoko that could make him feel this way? Why was it only  _this civilian girl_  that could make him crumble and cry like a baby?

"Wh-why is it always  _you_ that knows what to say?" Kakashi found himself blurting out, voice cracking. "Wh-wh-why is it always  _you_  that knows how to make me look and feel so  _ridiculous_?"

Tomoko simply smiled sadly, continuing to brush through his silver hair. "…You're not ridiculous when you're just being human, Kakashi-kun. And honestly, I don't know—maybe it's because I know you so well."

That same part of him didn't feel satisfied with her answer, and Kakashi found himself laughing, an empty tone in his weak voice. "…I-I guess we're both fools then, huh?"

To the ninja's shock, Tomoko tensed and pulled away only to slam her forehead right into his.  _Ow._ Kakashi was very grateful for his forehead protector taking most of the blow, but he could still see the girl wince from the pain, a small trickle of blood now showing on her bruising head. … _Why did you—?_  Before he could complete that train of thought, Tomoko grabbed his face again, forcing him to look into her determined blue orbs.

"Kakashi-kun, right now, I don't care what you may think on the matter, but you're  _not ridiculous_. You're not useless, okay? Whoever put that in your head is a complete  _fool_."

 _Huh?_  The tears were slowly drying on his masked face as Tomoko weakly smiled at him, gently wiping at the trails on his eyes. "It's  _okay_  to cry. It's  _okay_ to be emotional—because it shows you're more than a shinobi. Being emotional like this just shows that you're still Hatake Kakashi—my best friend and a person I treasure very much. So, don't think that being upset like this makes you any less of a shinobi than anyone else. Everyone cries at one point—it just shows that you're  _human_."

It was as if a weight was lifted off of his chest. Kakashi felt relief for the first time in days, but he couldn't help but voice his doubt. "E-even if it looks ridiculous?"

Tomoko frowned again, absently wiping away the blood on her forehead before taking out a tissue to wipe at his face. "Even if it looks ridiculous. Humanity is pretty illogical that way."

 _This girl…_  Kakashi shakily sighed. "…You're unbelievable."

No one really tried to say that before. But then again, who ever did?

Shinobi were built to put their emotions away for the sake of the mission. But Tomoko was the first one to call it horrible, indirectly calling the entire system a  _fool_.

Even if she didn't understand everything, Tomoko said something that Kakashi forgot all this time.

Before being a ninja, he was  _human_. And Tomoko was the one that recognized it all this time, playing piano so that other ninja would realize this too. That there was more than just missions and bloodshed. There was more in life than just listening to the Hokage.

When did he forget all that?

Tomoko just grinned happily, as if she saw the gears turning in his head, her hand reaching up to poke his cheek. "But you're still with me anyways."

"Y-yeah…" Kakashi grabbed the hand she used to poke his cheek, relief continuing to flood his systems. The tears were finally starting to go away, and for once, his heart didn't feel like it was in a cage.  _It's always been you that's been different, huh?_  "Yeah."

Kakashi, quite frankly, needed more of this in his life.

He just wasn't expecting it to come so soon.

Somehow, Tomoko was able to get Sakumo out. Just with that large concert, with Hikari-san and Judai-san playing their own instruments alongside her, she was able to reach Sakumo's heart more so than he did, her message resonating with everyone there.

_"Move onward, not there yet, so let's just live!"_

The old Kakashi probably would've felt angry with himself for the fact that he wasn't able to help his father. But this time, things were different.

Kakashi already knew by now that Tomoko had something that no one else really had aside from her immediate family members.

She knew how to look beyond the surface and truly  _empathize_  with someone.

And to Kakashi, he couldn't be more grateful for her presence. For once, he was actively enjoying missions, even if they were D-rank, talking to others his age. Minato-sensei seemed to be so much closer than before, and with Sakumo properly taking a break to teach at the Academy, the father-son duo were able to train together again in a non-stressful environment.

Heck, even Jiraiya came back to visit!

"Yo, Kakashi! Good to see you and Sakumo doing well! Give Tomoko-chan my regards, okay?"

Kakashi just couldn't thank her enough. She gave him a warm sanctuary with her piano; she saved Sakumo from doing something he might've regretted; and hell! She even convinced her family somehow to have the Hatakes live together with them just so that the two ninja could have a warm home to come back to.

The ninja never thought that he would wake up to the scent of warm breakfast and a loving smile.

"Wakey wakey, sleepy-head!" For such an early hour, Tomoko still had on that bright smile, her touch soft when shaking him awake. "Breakfast's almost ready! Minato-san should be coming by in an hour, so get on up, okay?"

Kakashi only had two things to say about the civilian girl.

Hoshino Tomoko was different. And he was just grateful that she was his best friend.


	17. Team Minato

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anybody or anything except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe.
> 
> The outfit that Tomoko wears specifically this chapter is again from Darling Army, titled 'Rapunzel Tangled Disneybound Dapper Day Vintage Pin-Up Circle Skirt.' Just picture Tomoko wearing said skirt with the pink blouse in the picture (make sure to resize the clothes themselves to match a 9 year old), add in white flats, and you're good to go!
> 
> On the other hand, the song for this chapter is specifically the Naruto Shippuden Unreleased Track titled, Konoha Peace. If you want, you can also listen to its second counterpart simply titled "Konoha Peace 2" for most of this chapter. It's not piano - but it's there simply to set the mood since Tomoko doesn't actually play the piano in this chapter. It's specifically a lot of characters interacting with each other!
> 
> Please enjoy!
> 
> Dedicated to the many people who reviewed Kakashi's Interlude! Thanks for all the feedback guys, it's really appreciated!

_Chapter 15: Team Minato_

It was actually about a year later, into the beginning of spring, that Minato-san and Kushina-san came to, 'borrow,' me one day. Aside from sharing a birthday party with Kakashi (apparently since our birthdays were only 9 days apart, the adults decided to have it on the same day just to save time), not much had changed aside from the fact I started growing a chest… again. I still don't know how I feel about that since even in my past life, I was an early bloomer.

It attracted way too much attention back in the day, even though I was considered slightly above average for an Asian-American girl in America's eyes.

…Thank goodness that there is medicine and/or jutsu to prevent monthly bleeding. Just, thank goodness. That saved on laundry days.

It was actually around this time that I officially decided to keep my current hairstyle of somewhat curled bob-cut with hair ribbon on one strand. Long hair was pretty and all, but I already saw how it didn't benefit Sakura in canon in the long run. How Hinata escaped that was and  _still_  is beyond me. And, to be frank, from my past experience, taking care of long hair is just a  _pain_.

…I know Mom back then appreciated my long hair because she could use me as a hair model for various hairstyles, but the copious amounts of shampoo and conditioner were just not worth it! Not to mention the various loose hairs that ended up clogging the piping in the bathrooms.

No way was I putting any of the capable people in charge of cleaning those places through that kind of hell!

Aside from that, not much had changed from the daily routine. Kakashi and Sakumo-san still did their ninja work, with Kakashi heading out on missions and Sakumo-san teaching kenjutsu and other techniques at the Academy. Nagareboshi Cafe was slowly getting back most of its clientele after the whole 'Hatake rumor mill' thing, but it was a slow process.

At the time, Mom and Dad had yet to open up Nagareboshi Cafe and the entire house was seated around the living room table having breakfast when they came in.

"Hikari-san! Judai-san! You guys around?"

Sakumo-san was the first one to react, blinking while still holding his chopsticks and rice bowl. "…Was that Kushina?"

In response, I just looked at Kakashi, who was sitting next to me and poking the saury fish in front of him with his chopsticks. My best friend just stared back, shrugging nonchalantly before turning back to his food. I guess he wasn't up for physically voicing his answer. Then again, we had been living together for almost a year now, so I was used to his quiet conversations.

…I'll get into how he wasn't wearing his mask another time. Honestly, I'm still surprised that he's used to not wearing it around me anymore considering how tense he was when we first met. And to be honest, I didn't see what the big deal was. Kakashi had a face like anyone else's - he just chose to hide it. And I will admit, he was kind of cute with the mole on his chin and the small canine fangs.

But still, it's just a face. No big deal — he just wants to cover it up for some kind of reason, and I'm not going to judge him on that. Or question it. It was his business.

I guess I should take his showing me his face as a sign that he really trusts me?

"Hikari-san? Judai-san? Are you guys there?"

…Huh, judging by the extra voice, I guess Minato-san was out there too.

Mom and Dad just glanced at one another before simultaneously sighing. I guess it was too early in the morning for them to invite guests. Nevertheless, Dad got up from his chair while rolling his eyes, going over to the front door and opening it to let the guests in.

From the living room table, even with Dad's tall figure, I could see the telltale signs of blond spikes and long red hair. Then…

" _Tomoko-chan~!_ " I didn't even think of dodging the incoming tackle hug. Kushina-san had that kind of influence and hey — why do you think I try not to tackle hug Kakashi like that anymore since he started living here? I now know what it's like for him to deal with the full brunt of a tackle, and it can be both loving and uncomfortable.

…Even though I still do like tackle-hugging Kakashi occasionally. Just because.

Don't laugh! Seriously — I've been a hugger, even in my past life! And everyone needs at least one hug in their day!

…And Kakashi is snuggly. Currently, no one else apparently matches Kakashi's level of comfortable 'hugginess' — and that's saying something. The only person I remember who had that same quality in my past life was Leo — and that's a lot to say considering he was my boyfriend!

… I still have no clue on the whole love situation in  _ninja standards_  even though I have experience from my past self. Hopefully it was similar and  _not_ drawn out like Canon. I could hope a little.

Oh well. Turns out that I was being smothered by the Red Hot Habanero again, though not as much as our first meeting. Hey, I could still breathe! Woo!

Though, if I sugar-coated the whole situation, I could conclude that I was being snuggled.  _But_  considering how Kushina-san was actually carrying me in her arms and lifting me in the air, that's kind of an understatement.

"…Hello, Kushina-nee-san." My voice came out a bit more squeaky than usual with the name. Huh, must be because of the tight hugging the woman was doing, and I could swear Kushina-san tensed for a moment.

Uh-oh.

"…Tomoko-chan, what did you just call me?"

_Meep._

Her serious bright violet orbs were now staring at me intently, and a part of me felt like I was on the witness stand in a courtroom with how I was put on spot.

No wonder so many witnesses in Phoenix Wright games had breakdowns. The pressure can be a lot!

"…Um, Kushina-nee-san?" I blurted out, voice high-pitched again.

There was a large silence, enough for a pin to drop. It was as if it was the calm before the storm. And then Kushina-san reacted.

"Oh my gosh, Tomoko-chan, you are  _so cute!_ "

And  _oof_ , I was being smothered again. If not for the small pocket of air I had in the hug, I might've stopped breathing due to Kushina-san's chest or massive curtain of red hair. On the other hand, the redhead's voice went up a pitch or two because from the close distance, it sounded like she was  _squealing._ Why? Just,  _why_  me? "Minato, did you hear that? Tomoko-chan called me  _nee-san_!"

I could swear Minato-san was sweating behind us, a shaky smile on his face. "I-I can see that, Kushina. But Tomoko-chan seems to be a bit uncomfortable there…"

"No kidding," Dad deadpanned, crossing his arms. "Kushina, I know you find my baby girl adorable, especially considering all the clothes Hikari puts her in—" Mom just raised an eyebrow at him and he coughed into his fist. "—But Tomoko-chan needs  _air_."

By that point, it felt like I was in astronomy, watching the universe go by. Space mechanics — eh.

…Never did fully get into astronomy, even back in my past life. But still. The stars looked pretty! Ooooh.

"Oh! I-I'm sorry, Tomoko-chan…" And I was promptly put back down into my seat in the gentlest manner possible. There went all the stars.

Though, I wasn't expecting to be treated akin to a doll, considering who was handling me. The multiple fanfictions that my past self read had Kushina generalized as a tackle-hugging woman who didn't know how to let up on the force, but fanfictions are definitely different from reality.

Once my vision finally stopped swirling, I could see Kushina-san's concerned violet orbs looking over me, her hands lightly touching my shoulders to make sure I was still coherent. "Are you okay?"

Now I can see how she became Naruto's mother in the future.

In response, I gave her a soft nod and a smile, laughing lightly. "I-I'm okay, Kushina-nee-san, no worries!"

The woman in front of me simply sighed in relief, kneeling down to my height to smile back at me before standing up to go near Minato-san.

"…So," Mom started, having not moved from her position at the living room table. "While we do appreciate the company, Minato-san, Kushina-san, what did you two come here for? I'm sure it's not because you want breakfast."

Minato-san in response just blinked before laughing sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with his hand. "U-Um, Yeah. I-in fact, we were wondering if we could borrow Tomoko-chan for the day."

"… _Why_  Tomoko-chan, exactly?" Dad interjected, frown on his face. I honestly echoed similar sentiments in my head. I mean, usually Minato-san came just for Kakashi to take on a mission. Why would a high-ranking Jounin such as the Yellow Flash come by and ask to borrow a civilian girl?

…For some reason, I had a bad feeling.

Apparently Kakashi echoed similar thoughts, because he took the moment to speak up. "What do you plan on borrowing Tomoko for, Sensei?" Without his mask, I could clearly see the curious frown on his face. "I thought we had a training session today."

Kushina-san took the time to beam at him. "You still do, Kakashi-kun, it's just that I was hoping to take Tomoko-chan for a girls day out!"

"…A girls day out?" Kakashi deadpanned.

_Yep, he's not believing this as much as I am._

"…A girls day out?" Sakumo-san muttered too, eyes betraying his suspicion.

"A girls day out..." I repeated, blinking in confusion. "But I have work today..." And a part of me already knew that a lot of Nagareboshi regulars looked forward to listening to my piano music every day. Heading out for something like a 'girls day out' just seemed to equal 'disappointment and lower sales' considering how Nagareboshi was still recovering after the whole 'Hatake rumor mill.'

What to do…?

Apparently my worry seemed to be really obvious because Minato-san smiled lightly and walked over to pat my head. "Don't worry, Tomoko-chan, if anything, you'll just be gone until about sunset. I was just hoping to borrow you for a small favor."

Now I was feeling confused. "…Favor?" I looked up at him and couldn't help but notice the warmth in his blue eyes. They weren't the same shade of blue as Mom's, but they certainly reminded me of a certain other blonde knucklehead.

_Then again, Naruto won't be around for quite a while._

"Yep, just a small favor." Minato-san smiled again, now ruffling my hair. "You'll be working with Kushina while I take Kakashi for his training session. It's kind of…hmm…" He pulled away for a moment to put a hand to his chin, closing his eyes to formulate an answer. "I was hoping if you could work with Kushina on some household stuff and stop by the training fields later today."

I think I see where this is going.

"…Minato-san, are you asking if I could bring you and Kakashi-kun  _lunch_?" To be honest, that sounded like the most outlandish favor  _period_. Minato-san already had Kushina-san around to make him lunch, and Kakashi had Sakumo-san  _and_  Mom if he needed anything.

Heck, Mom always packed Kakashi a bento these days!

Why would Minato-san want me to help Kushina-san then? Was there a different kind of occasion that I was missing? Or some kind of formal event for ninja?

The blonde Jounin in front of me blinked before laughing sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with a hand. "…Was it that obvious?"

"Yes." I said dryly, raising an eyebrow. "And why? Mom and Sakumo-san already handle most of the food for Kakashi-kun anyway, not to mention Kushina-san should be living with you…" I pretended to not notice the large blush that covered Minato-san's cheeks at my remark, sighing. "So, Minato-san, if I can ask, why?"

"..." Minato-san simply stared at me.

"..." I stared back.

_Are we seriously having a stare-off right now? I'm starting to hate contemplative silences if all ninja pull this._

In the end, I just huffed and threw my hands in the air. "You know what, I'll just go. It looks like I won't get any answers until later, and I don't want to argue about this since it's still early in the morning—"

"It's already 9, Tomoko." Kakashi interjected smoothly, having already pulled up his mask due to finishing his breakfast.

"—Kakashi-kun, I love you and all, but could you let me handle this for a bit, please?" I sniped back dryly, doing my best to keep a civil, polite tone. Normally, I wouldn't be so  _testy_ , but it was already shaping up to be a weird day, courtesy of Naruto's future parents. I think I had a good excuse. "I get the point."

My best friend simply raised an eyebrow at me before slouching back in his seat, grumbling something under his breath. It was too low to hear, but it was probably something along the lines of 'stubborn dolt.'

Well, I love you too, you insufferable ninja. And it's way too early for your sass!

"Alrighty then!" Kushina-san took the moment to clap her hands together, smiling happily. "I guess you're coming with us then, Tomoko-chan!"

"…You two aren't going to be dragging her into any fights now, are you?"  _Mom_. For once, she seemed to be taking up the 'protective parent' role that Dad normally occupied, blue eyes narrowed with suspicion. Despite her sitting position, I could tell that her shoulders were tense with worry and that said more than enough.

Before I could say anything though, Kushina took the chance to speak. "Don't worry, Hikari-san, Tomoko-chan will be with me anyway! It's just really housework and observing some of Minato's training session, that's all!" Despite the redhead's bright grin, I noticed Mom's shoulders tense even more and Dad took the moment to interject.

"…Again, why do you need Tomoko?"

Oh no.

It looked like Dad was about a stage or two away from the 'Protective Daddy' mode I had witnessed him in before, being significantly calmer than said mode, standing up from his seat after finishing his previous sentence. However, I could still see a glint of red and green in his normally brown eyes. "I thought I already talked to the both of you about how I don't want my little girl getting too involved with ninja life."

_Says the man who brought up the idea of bringing in Kakashi-kun and Sakumo-san to live with us._

I didn't voice the thought though, since the mood made it more than obvious that this was between my parents and the two guests in the room.

Even Sakumo-san himself seemed to get the idea, quietly getting up from his chair and putting the dishes away. He gave Kakashi a warm hug and passed by me to give a soft pat on my head before heading out the front door where Minato-san and Kushina-san came in. I guess he wanted to head over to the Academy early.

Once Sakumo-san left, there was a moment of silence. I could literally feel the tension in the room between the two groups of adults, and somehow found myself leaning towards Kakashi. My best friend didn't say anything about my presence, thankfully, simply wrapping an arm around my shoulders in a soft side-hug and letting me rest my head on his shoulder. It's at times like these that I'm grateful Kakashi knows me so well — it's like I don't have to say anything and he knows when I need to lean on him.

"… Kakashi-kun?" Despite my soft tone, he heard me anyway, humming. "Thank you."

From the close distance, I could feel the soft smile on his masked face, his cheek gently resting on top of my head. "You're welcome, Tomoko."

Soon enough, the silence was broken with Minato-san's sigh. I looked up to see him cough into his fist before staring at my dad, and a shiver went down my back.

What I was seeing right now was the Yellow Flash and Future Fourth Hokage in all of his glory, mouth set in a thin line and blue eyes screaming quiet determination, facing my dad who seemed a bit smaller than before. "I understand your concerns, Judai, but Tomoko-chan's been involved ever since you opened up Nagareboshi Cafe and let her get to know Kakashi. I simply wanted to borrow her as a means of emotional support considering today's training session is considerably different, that's all."

Dad blinked before sighing himself, hand to his head. From my point of view, he looked 10 years older than his actual age, stress lines showing on his face. "Let me guess, it's life-changing in terms of ninja life for both you and Kakashi, and since my little girl is known for calming down bad situations, the sweet motivator that she is, you want her there just in case?"

"Basically that!" Kushina-san piped in, placating smile on her face.

It was at this point that Mom stood up, placing her hand over Dad's clenched fist in a calming gesture. The scene alone made me very tempted to jump up from my own seat to hug the two just to dispel the almost choking atmosphere, but I could tell Kakashi was tense next to me. I guess it was the whole 'life-changing' part that made my best friend seem a bit stiffer than before.

Damage control it is.

Without even thinking, I simply reached over to grab Kakashi's hand, the one that wasn't on my shoulder, to squeeze it gently. To my surprise, he immediately reacted, intertwining our fingers together and lightly squeezing back. Despite all the calluses on his hand from training, the whole gesture just felt  _nice_ , and I found myself snuggling into my best friend's side more while closing my eyes.

Overall, I'm very grateful that Kakashi is so snuggly. It really helps when tensions are at an all-time high.

"…Alright," The sound of Dad's voice made the moment end somewhat quickly, and I looked up only to see his usually tall figure slump back down into his chair at the living room table. He sighed, and for some reason, worry just flooded my entire system.

_Why is Dad looking like that? Did the ninja world really impact him that much to worry about me?_

"You can have Tomoko-chan for the day, just make sure she's safe, alright?" It was probably the first time I had ever seen Dad so  _tired_ , and to be honest, it was sort of terrifying. I only had to glance up once at Kakashi and my best friend seemed to understand immediately, nodding in agreement and letting go of me. I didn't even think about the loss of familiar warmth because all that was on my mind was  _Dad_.

He seemed to notice me coming before I even realized I was running over, and his brown eyes widened. "Tomoko-chan—"

I tackle-hugged him. Unlike the times I tackled Kakashi, I made sure to loosen up on the force and just take in the presence that was  _Dad_. Even if I didn't know what was going on in his head, I did know at least one thing.

I never wanted to see Dad look so  _defeated_  like right now.

"Tomoko-chan…" His gravely, deep voice reached the tips of my ears, but all I did was just tighten my hold around his torso, burying my face into the crook of his neck. He smelled faintly of cologne, and it was  _definitely_  different from the presence of my first Dad, but it was still  _Dad_.

All I could think of saying was just an apology. "I'm sorry, Daddy."

_For worrying you, for getting you out of your comfort zone._

_For possibly not being the daughter you wanted because of my past memories_.

A warm hand touched the small of my back before arms wrapped around my small frame to return the hug for a moment. "What are you apologizing for, sweetie?" To my surprise, I found myself being held by the waist, lifted up in the air similar to my baby days. Dad's warm brown eyes stared into my blue ones, and he just grinned as though it was a normal day. Nearby, I could see Mom smiling gently at the scene, sitting close to where Dad was. "You didn't do anything wrong, Tomoko-chan."

For some reason, a part of me just couldn't believe that, frown on my face. "But…" I managed before stopping myself. The words just couldn't come out and I was just left sitting there in Dad's hold, feeling like a rag doll. "But I…"

"Come on, sweetie, don't look so sad like that." I was honestly surprised Dad was still keeping up that warm, cheerful smile, bringing me down to sit in his lap. "You're just heading out for a day. Don't worry — Mom and Dad can handle the shop for you. And besides, you wanted to help Kakashi-kun and Minato-san before, didn't you?"

"That's true, but…" I trailed off again, licking my dry lips.

"But what, Tomoko-chan?" It was Mom that spoke this time, reaching over to lightly poke my cheek.

_But am I doing enough to help you though? Am I really doing the right thing by always going to the ninja's side of things when I know you two need me just as much?_

Despite my thought process, the words just didn't come out and I had to improvise. "But what about Nagareboshi? I mean, some of the regulars still haven't come back yet and I know Mommy and Daddy work as hard as they can just to support everybody, so—"

"So what?"  _Dad?_  I looked up only to get feel a bit of his re-growing stubble rubbing against my forehead.

 _Ah, itchy_.

"Don't worry so much, Tomoko-chan — Mommy and Daddy are really awesome and can handle it!" Dad's grin was almost blinding from the close distance, glints of white teeth showing from between his lips. "You keep forgetting we're musicians too, sweetheart, so don't worry so much."

To my surprise, Mom and Dad both looked at each other before reaching over and flicking my forehead.  _Ouch_.  _Did I just get flicked twice?_  "You go out there and support everybody in that sweet way of yours, okay? We can handle the homefront."

Relief and just plain happiness flooded my entire system.

_Yep, I always seem to get the best parents ever, no matter what life I'm in._

"Okay…" A soft, happy sigh ended up escaping my lips, and despite the closed space I was in with Dad's hug, I was able to reach out and pull Mom into the group embrace. Only one thing was left to say without question. I had to say it, no matter what. "I love you, Mom. I love you, Dad."

It seemed like the atmosphere lightened almost immediately because both my parents tightened the hug on me, smiling cheerfully. "We love you too, Tomoko-chan."

Yep, if digital cameras were still a thing in this world, I would've called the whole thing a good Kodak moment.

But despite the happy atmosphere, I couldn't help but notice Minato-san, Kushina-san,  _and_  Kakashi all standing by the side rather awkwardly, looking at one another.

I held back the urge to sigh.

… _Am I just the hug initiator at this point?_

In the end, I ended up getting up from my parents' hold just to pull the three ninja into a group hug too, rolling my eyes.

"…Tomoko-chan?" Minato-san asked, tone clearly stating his confusion at the whole 'group hug' dynamic I was emitting.

"…You three looked like you needed a hug, so I was just providing it." I deadpanned back, tightening my hug on the three. "So, don't say anything else and just enjoy the moment please."

Kakashi scoffed something that sounded akin to, 'What the hell,' before being the first person to respond, putting an arm around me and Minato-san.

_Thank you, best friend._

Then it was Kushina, being a bit more enthusiastic in her response, literally pulling the frozen Yellow Flash into the group hug with a giant grin while snuggling me. Finally, Minato-san seemed to get the idea and hugged all of us, sheepishly smiling himself.

Ninja really need to learn how to be more emotionally open when the time calls for it.

And when other people ( _cough_  — other civilians and ninja —  _cough_ ) finally recognize it, I'll just call it right then and there. 'I told you so!' sounds really nice for that kind of scenario. At least, when it happens. Or if it ever happens.

With how things were going though, I guess we'll see.

…Probably have to get changed out of my nightgown first though.

* * *

After getting changed into a casual outfit consisting of a short-sleeved pink blouse and flowing purple skirt reminiscent of  _Tangled_ 's Rapunzel, Kushina-san was the one to take me out while Minato-san took Kakashi to whatever training field they were going to be working at. But when getting to Minato-san and Kushina-san's home, I couldn't help but think ' _organized_.'

I mean, seriously. In the original canon timeline, Naruto's apartment was messy like all hell, very similar to my brother's room from my previous life, so a part of me was expecting something similar coming from Naruto's parents.

…Then again, canon Kakashi did comment on how Minato-san was very meticulous when visiting Naruto's home as a way of showing his disbelief, so I guess he rubbed off on Kushina-san?

Eh — it still works for me.

Kushina-san, or,  _Kushina-nee_ , as she insisted on me using for her, ushered me into the home really quickly, lightly pushing me via the hand on my back to walk into the kitchen, grinning the whole way.

I have a strange feeling she sees me as something akin to Mio's 'Moe-Moe Kyun'-ness from  _K-On_.

…I'm not going to dwell on that because honestly — I don't think my appearance is all that noteworthy. Heck, I'm still shocked that she squeals over me despite me being a civilian girl! What made me so different?

Why did she choose to dote on me?

"So, Tomoko-chan!" I blinked, looking up at the smiling redhead. "How do you feel about bentos?"

"…Bentos?" I repeated back, disbelief seeping into my voice.

"Bentos," Kushina-nee repeated. "Minato was actually hoping you and I could work together to make some for his new team today!"

…Okay, I was definitely spacing out or something, because the ' _new team_ ' statement just threw a good wrench into my thoughts.

"New team?" I found myself squeaking, tone yelling volumes of my uncertainty. "I thought Kakashi-kun was Minato-san's only student, Kushina-nee-chan."

Kushina blinked before shaking her head, still smiling all the way. "That's true, Tomoko-chan, but things are a bit different now. Hokage-sama was actually thinking about taking Kakashi-kun off of the reserves, by assigning two new Academy graduates to Minato to form a full team. There was an odd number of students this year, so yeah! By adding on two more ninja, Minato now has a full three-man cell and they can head out on missions!"

 _Oh no_. Horror seeped into my stomach.  _Don't tell me today marks the beginnings of Team Minato?!_

"U-Um, Kushina-nee-chan," I managed, voice becoming dry from the lack of saliva in my mouth. "B-By chance, do you know who are the new graduates that will be joining Kakashi-kun today?"

The redhead blinked, putting a hand on her chin to think for a moment. "Um, I believe their names were…uh, Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin? Yeah! I know of Obito through Mikoto-chan, but Rin, I haven't seen around much."

 _Oh dear. It was those two after all._ I forced myself to swallow the thick lump in my throat to speak. "I-I see…"

_This is what Minato-san needed me for, huh? Mediator for any possible tensions…_

Then again, I couldn't blame the Jounin for his decision. Heck, it actually made sense in the long run. Even though I was able to make Kakashi open up a lot more to the idea of working with others and the concept of teamwork through my friendship with him, the silver haired Chunin was still used to working alone. And with the way Minato-san carefully dropped that bomb, I don't think Kakashi would appreciate having to take care of two new teammates, even if Sakumo-san did train them during their time at the Academy. I could easily imagine Kakashi's unhappy face at this point, and a shudder went through my spine.

_Yep, there's going to be chaos. The fact that I know the three of them on a personal basis will help them, but how much?_

I decided not to think on it too much because Kushina-nee-chan was suddenly in my face, looking concerned. "Tomoko-chan?"

 _Ah, I spaced out for too long_.

"I-I'm okay, Kushina-nee," I smiled, reaching over to pat her head. Since she was kneeling to my height, it was more than enough to touch her hair, and it was actually as soft as it looked. Hooray! "I was just thinking. How about we start on those bentos now?"

Immediately, the worry was wiped off the woman's face to be replaced with a bright, blinding smile. Essentially, I was getting an eyeful of the main cheerfulness that would serve as the basis for Naruto's own smile, and to be frank, I felt both weirded out and honored knowing this. "Of course, Tomoko-chan!"

To my surprise, Kushina-nee-chan ran over to a cupboard, pulling out two aprons and tucking one over my head. I ended up looking down and getting an eyeful of blue plaid and white lace. I'm guessing she chose this one to match the white hair ribbon I was already wearing. Without even thinking, I tied the strings behind my back in a bow and just watched Kushina-nee-chan tie her hair in a ponytail, waiting.

Once she finished, Kushina-nee-chan pushed her long red ponytail behind her shoulder before grinning at me, an approving glint in her eye. "So, Tomoko-chan, what are Kakashi's favorite foods?"

_I've really gotten myself deep into the lives of Team Minato and friends, haven't I?_

Outwardly, I just smiled and giggled. "Well, there's miso soup and eggplant, then there's saury fish…"

* * *

By the time Kushina-nee-chan and I finished cooking and individually packing each bento box, it was almost noon, with the sun high in the sky. Since it was spring, there was a cool breeze coming through the open window, and I just decided to bask in it while looking down at our work.

For a 9 year old, I just felt proud with what I just accomplished with Kushina-nee's help.

There was a total of 6 large bento boxes sitting on the table in front of me, each about the size of a small delivery box, wrapped up in a large purple cloth. I didn't even have to reopen each package to know what was in each of them. Each box had a mix of different entrees and side dishes, including Kakashi's beloved saury fish, rice balls, pickled daikon, tamagoyaki, karaage, tempura shrimp, broiled salmon, and quite a few others I couldn't remember considering Kushina-nee's meticulous work. There was just so much that went into each bento box that I just couldn't keep track of it all as a result of my past memories.

In my past life, lunches were usually simple and compact. Mom in those days would either pack leftovers or a simple combination of rice, a different type of meat (either fish, chicken, or pork), and some boiled vegetables such as baby bok choy, accompanied by one or two fruit such as a small apple or tangerines. Whether it was for the better or not, the bento boxes sitting in front of me had a lot more variety with their food choices, having more than enough to satisfy everyone.

…Hopefully.

Despite that though, I still ended up adding quite a few of my own touches to the lunches. To be honest, I was shocked that fruits weren't initially in the plan for the bentos, and as a result, turned to my old blueberry muffin recipe to add a healthy dessert to all the food already there. Even though I hadn't made them in years, considering how my past life ended so abruptly and adding in the time I've lived so far in the Naruto-verse, it was like they were already implanted in my muscle memory, my hands knowing how to fold the milk and flour into the dough like a pro. By the time they came out of the oven, I was positive Kushina-nee was drooling a little, and I couldn't help but feel a surge of pride when packing them into their own blue cloth.

Even in this life, turns out my desserts still turns heads. Back then, Mom, Dad, and my brother all enjoyed my muffins and the other sweets I made, so knowing that I made Kushina-nee, the ramen-eating champion, drool at the sight of my creations made me happy.

If the main ramen-loving Uzumaki looked happy at the sight of my muffins, who knows about the other ninja?

"So, Tomoko-chan, you ready?" Kushina-nee had just taken the hair-band out of her hair, having already put away her orange apron to smile at me, picking up the large purple bundle from the table.

"I'm ready, Kushina-nee!" I just grabbed the small blue bundle sitting next to the purple one that carried all my muffins, positively beaming. "Let's go already!"

"Alright, alright, Tomoko-chan." The redhead Uzumaki only grinned, reaching over to pat my head. "We're going now." And with a swift opening of the front door, we were quickly out in the sunlight-paved roads of Konoha, walking.

Honestly, I was surprised no one was really giving us any apprehensive looks. Then again, considering that Kushina-nee was an accomplished ninja in her own right and that Kurama's existence was an S-class secret, I shouldn't be surprised.

…Probably shouldn't give Kushina-nee a scare by letting her know…well, that I  _know_  about Kurama. That would lead to way too much drama, emotionally and physically.

Ninja already have to go through a lot of shit. I don't want to add more to the poor camel's back.

"…So, where will we find Minato-san and Kakashi-kun, Kushina-nee?" At my question, the redhead simply turned her head to look down at me, smiling happily.

"Training Ground number 3, Tomoko-chan," Kushina-nee answered back, voice edged with a small bit of seriousness. "It was where the Three Sannin were tested by Hokage-sama when they first became Genin, so Minato thought it would be a good idea to bring his new team there."

"…Tested?" A part of me was thinking  _bell test_ , but I ended up asking anyway just to make sure.

"To make sure if they're ready for the life of a ninja, Tomoko-chan." Kushina-nee stopped for a moment to lean over and pat my head again. "You don't have to worry about that too much, though, sweetie — I'm sure they can handle it."

For once, my mind and heart were in agreement, and I just nodded. Considering how canon went, Team Minato would pass the bell test. The only thing that I wasn't sure of was  _how_. In the original anime, canon Kakashi essentially used a formation that only  _resembled_  teamwork just to take a bell for his own. But I knew that my Kakashi wouldn't really resort to such tactics.

So then, how would…?

"Tomoko?" I blinked before looking around.

_Did I just hear Kakashi?_

Apparently I was spacing out too much because Kushina-nee simply resorted to putting a hand around my shoulders and turning me around to face the scene.

All I could think of was:  _I really space out_ _ **way**_   _too much_.

Somehow, in the time I was thinking, we had already arrived at the Training Grounds, green grass and all, and I could clearly see the figures of my best friend as well as an older Obito and Rin, all three panting. Even with the distance, I could make out telltale signs of scratches and exhaustion setting in for the three of them. On the other hand, Minato-san was still standing up tall, beaming like there was nothing wrong. It was only with the next breeze that I heard a familiar  _tinkle_  noise coming from their direction.

 _Looks like they did do the bell test after all_.

I held back every urge to run over and hug them all in order to hesitantly step forward and wave, the blue bundle still in my arms. "Um…hello again, everybody?"

"Tomoko…?" It was Kakashi who caught his breath first, standing up almost shakily to walk over to me. "What are you doing here?"

In response, I just lifted up the blue bundle in my hands for my friend to look at. "To deliver lunch."

"…That's what the 'girls day out' was for?" Wait. Why did Kakashi sound so  _surprised_? Just…why?

"Um, yes?" I replied, blinking and pointing to the happy redhead standing next to me. "I was with Kushina-san cooking."

"…That's it?" Now Kakashi was just sounding  _weird_ , silver eyes wide with…some kind of emotion I couldn't pinpoint. Maybe I was just reading into it too much since he was still sweating and breathing a bit shorter than usual.

Or was it just me overthinking in general? He was tired…

"That's it, what were you expecting?" My curious question apparently snapped him out of whatever funk he was in because Kakashi quickly looked to the side, not meeting my eyes. I guess he was expecting something else, but with how disheveled he looked, with tears in his black jersey and shinobi pants, the worrywart in me just went berserk. Here we go with more damage control. "But still, are you okay, Kakashi-kun?" Without even thinking, I took out a handkerchief from my skirt pocket, wiping at the visible sweat and scratches on Kakashi's face before even waiting for an answer.

Apparently Kakashi wasn't expecting my action and swerved his head to look at me in a mixture of surprise and shock. "…Tomoko?"

I just sighed. I guess he was spacing out just as much as I was today. "What's the matter, Kakashi-kun? You've been out of it ever since I came by."

The Chunin blinked before breathing out through his nose, still not meeting my eyes. "…It's nothing, Tomoko."

_I don't trust that at all, y'know._

"…Kakashi-kun," I said dryly, continuing to wipe at any visible wounds with my handkerchief. "We've been through this already."

"And really, it's nothing this time." He insisted, stubborn tone in his voice.

"…Tomoko-chan?" The sudden sound of Obito's voice made me blink and look away from my infuriating best friend to only see wide black eyes through orange goggles. "Y-You…"

I blinked. "I what, Obito-kun?"

It was at this moment that Obito shakily raised a hand to point at both me and Kakashi, wide eyes darting between the two of us. "Y-You… _know_  this asshole?"

_Oh. Oh dear._

Looks like there's a misunderstanding here. I proceeded to ignore the quiet snickers of Kushina-nee next to me and carefully folded my handkerchief back into my pocket before responding dryly. "Well, Obito-kun, um…how should I word this?" For some reason, a huge lump came between my mouth and my throat, and I ended up looking at Kakashi for some help. In response, my friend simply raised an eyebrow, expression literally stating how much disbelief he had with the current situation.

…Well, I guess I'm on my own here. Shoot.

"Um…" I managed, voice becoming more and more high-pitched with each passing second. For some reason, my heart was going on a complete nervous marathon, so I ended up screwing my common sense over metaphorically and just blurted something out, motioning towards my best friend. "Obito-kun,thisisKakashi-kun,mybestfriendwho'snotanasshole!"

"…What?" Obito commented dryly.

"What?" Rin piped in, brown eyes blatantly showing her confusion.

"What?" Minato-san said slowly.

"…What was that, Tomoko?" Kakashi finished, tone literally showing how  _done_  he was with the whole thing.

My heart literally dropped in my stomach as I attempted to get a footing on my throat. "Um, well…" If possible, I might've been choking on my own saliva just trying to find something to say, hands fumbling with the blue bundle in my arms just in an attempt to collect myself.

_How do you tell a friend that your best friend is not an asshole without sounding like a bitch about it?!_

Kushina-nee still seemed to be laughing under her breath when reaching over to hug me to her side, visibly shaking. What a help she was being. Woo. "T-T-Tomoko-chan, just t-take —  _pfft_ — a deep breath, a-and try again, okay?"

At this rate, I swear I could cook an egg on my face just from how hot it was getting.  _This is really not the best time to be doubting myself._ I forced myself to breathe in deeply before responding. "Um…O-Obito-kun, this is Kakashi-kun," With a shaky hand, I motioned towards my best friend who simply waved nonchalantly. "My best friend, your apparent rival, and a person who's  _not_  an asshole...?"

There was silence. Then…

" _EHH?!_ " Even with the orange goggles over his face, I could clearly see Obito's eyes bulge considerably. "Y-You mean—" He shakily pointed at Kakashi before rounding back on me. "That best friend you always talked about was  _him_?!"

My face was definitely a tomato at this point due to my mess-up. "…You never asked and it was really just customer confidentiality…?" I trailed off, voice still high-pitched as always.

Turns out keeping confidentiality wasn't really the best choice when two of your best customers would end up being on a team together  _and_  hating each other's guts. Especially when you're the middleman/woman trying to help on both sides without interfering too much.

"…So, this is how you got to know the fool then, Tomoko?" Honestly, Kakashi's sassy, dry remark didn't help matters because all it did was add more tension to the rather hilarious situation. "Now I understand why you didn't talk to me about him."

 _You're misunderstanding this, Kakashi-kun! It was all customer confidentiality! How was I supposed to talk to you about Obito when I know you hate him_   _ **period**_ _!?_

"OI!"  _Oh no_ , now Obito was rounding on  _Kakashi_. This was escalating too quickly. "It was an honest mistake! I don't see YOU complaining about it!"

"There's no need," Kakashi huffed, and I was surprised to see him actively reach over and pull me into a side-hug. Eh? By chance, was he feeling possessive or tense all of a sudden? "Tomoko had her reasons — it was just your fault for not finding out sooner."

" _ARGH_! You wanna go at it?! I'm up for it!" Now Obito was actively trying to get in Kakashi's face, raising an angry fist.

" _Ah_?"

 _Kakashi, you're not helping with that nonchalant, 'cool' attitude!_ I found myself mentally panicking, glancing between the two ninja helplessly.

… _Is this how Rin feels when being stuck between these two guys?_

I honestly felt very small in the whole situation, even with my best friend nearby. Then again, I was kinda in the middle of what could be a guy fight, and I instantly knew that something had to be done.

"Uh…guys?" My small attempt only seemed to fall on deaf ears since the two just continued to glare at each other. In the panic, I attempted to glance at the others in sight, which included Minato-san, Rin, and Kushina-nee, mentally begging.

_Please help! Anyone will do! Please!_

…Unfortunately, no one was really attempting to do so. Minato-san was hiding a soft smile behind his fist, and Kushina-nee was full out laughing at that point. Rin was awkwardly standing at the sidelines, looking between all of us with a defeated smile.

Apparently they all were enjoying this at my expense…I think.

"You're just pissing me off, Bakashi!"

"Like you're one to talk, Obito."

" _ARGH_ , just let me hit you for once!"

"Yeah, no. You can try. I highly doubt you can."

Honestly, I was just getting tired of this bullshit, especially when these two somehow pulled me into being in-between them. Without even thinking, I just unwrapped the blue bundle in my arms, taking out two blueberry muffins. One I decided to simply stuff into Obito's mouth, wrapper and all, while the other I just placed into Kakashi's open hand before turning around and pinching the masked ninja's cheek.

The reaction was instantaneous.

"Wha— _MMPH_!" Obito protested, mouth full of blueberry muffin.

"…Why, Tomoko?" Kakashi deadpanned, giving me a half-lidded stare while glancing at the muffin in his hands, apparently not reacting to my pinching his cheek. "Just, why?"

High pain tolerance is a thing already. Darn it.

In response, I just shrugged and continued to pull on the ninja's face a bit, hoping to get something out of him. "You guys were being dorks. Really  _ridiculous_  dorks. And it's past noon — you need to eat."

As if on time, everyone's stomachs let out varying degrees of growls in agreement, mine included. Honestly, with all the weird stuff that was going down, I just didn't really care anymore and ended up letting go of Kakashi's cheek just to hug him.

"…Neh, Tomoko-chan, if it's okay, could I get a muffin too?" Rin put her two cents in, blush painting her cheeks and coloring a bit of her purple tattoos.

I just sighed, lightly beating my head against Kakashi's shoulder, ignoring his tense figure.

With how Team Minato was turning out, it was going to be a long few years.


	18. Storytelling & Spectulation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anybody or anything except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Saphira Lynx's piano cover of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's Snow Rain. Please enjoy!

_Chapter 16_ :  _Storytelling & Speculation_

Lunch was a rather…tense affair, to put it lightly.

I never thought I would see so many sparks go off between two boys all at once. Even with the copious amounts of food Kushina-nee and I put out.

…And somehow, I was still sandwiched between Obito and Kakashi. I don't even know how it even happened. When putting out the picnic blanket and the various bento boxes, everyone just sat in their own corners. I was just planning to sit in the middle to pass out the food to everyone, and yet somehow - I think it was Kushina-nee who pushed me — I ended up landing near Kakashi.  _And_  he just pulled me into a hug from behind, resting his chin on top of my head while putting his hands over mine.

All I could think of was  _Eh?_  And  _Why?_

For a 9 year old ninja, it was weird that he was being so… _huggy?_ Affectionate? I wasn't sure.

…Obito's glares in Kakashi's direction just made the situation that much stranger.

"…Kakashi-kun, what are you doing?" I managed, squirming a little. Even though I was enjoying the hug overall, the fact that my best friend was initiating it all by himself was a bit strange on its own.

_Is there something I'm missing here? Because I don't remember my best friend doing this willingly._

"Hugging a friend," The silver-haired Chunin huffed into my hair, and I could feel his chest rise and fall behind me in what appeared to be a sign of annoyance. I guess he was feeling stressed or something. "What — you don't like it?"

 _Oh_. "It's not that, it just feels different, that's all."

I found myself shrugging with a thought of,  _Ah, whatever._ Then, I just laid back against my best friend with a soft sigh, letting my shoulders relax while closing my eyes. Maybe I'm just thinking too much on it.

Hugs are something I do with friends, so maybe I rubbed off on Kakashi then!

Not to mention that he was  _warm_. In fact, I think he was warmer than usual considering Team Minato just finished the bell test, and his heart was still beating a bit faster than the normal 'thump-thump'. I just decided to bask in it, because it's  _nice_  to be hugged for once.

For once, it felt like I was at  _home_ **.**

"Thank you, Kakashi-kun," I said, moving a little just to intertwine our fingers. The ninja behind me tensed for a moment before relaxing and sighing.

"You're welcome, Tomoko," he murmured back, voice elated for once, and I couldn't help the smile on my face.

_At least I've succeeded so far in making one person's life a little happier._

"…You two really are close, though." Rin commented, muffin halfway towards her mouth. "How long have you two known each other?"

"Yeah!" Obito blurted out, stopping his glaring contest with Kakashi for a moment to look at me, pointing an eager finger at the both of us. "How did Bakashi end up warming up to you, Tomoko-chan?!"

Uh…

"What is that supposed to mean, Obito-kun? And if you add another insult, I'm going to be very disappointed." If not for my best friend already tensing up behind me and my common sense, I was very tempted to lash out myself. I know the Uchiha had a rivalry with Kakashi, but does he  _have_  to continue it now considering it's lunch time?

And I seriously thought that stuffing a blueberry muffin into his mouth would quiet the problem. At least for a few minutes.

It was like Obito was hit with a huge lightbulb of realization because he immediately turned sheepish at my response and rubbed the back of his head, looking away hesitantly. "W-well, Rin and I knew Kakashi back in the Academy days, but we really didn't talk much. We were…well…"

 _Oh, I think I see where this is going_.

"You were wondering how a civilian girl like me became so close to this guy?" Both Genin immediately nodded, almost a bit too eagerly for my liking, leaning in.

"…I'm actually curious about this too." Minato-san put his two cents in, swallowing a piece of tamagoyaki before wiping at his mouth and scooting closer. I didn't even have to look over at Kushina-nee — I could already  **feel**  her curious gaze on me.

_What is this, storytime?_

In response, I ended up squirming a little bit to turn in the hug and look at Kakashi in the eye. "Are you okay with me telling them this story?" It didn't really feel right to talk about it if I didn't have his permission after all.

Kakashi blinked before looking pointedly away, a frown on his face. I held back the urge to giggle in order to focus on my best friend.

_Is this Kakashi-style pouting?_

"…Do you have to?" He ground out, tightening the grip he had on me for a moment.

I just shrugged and squeezed his hands back in a apologetic manner. "How else will we get the stares to go away? I'm limited on the amount of muffins I can stuff in everyone's mouths anyway."

Not to mention shutting people up with homemade sweets seemed to be way too rude for my liking — even if the situation earlier with Obito kinda called for it.

Kakashi still wasn't meeting my eyes and was apparently deciding to go with the silent route. Honestly, I had barely any clue on what to do when my best friend was like this, so I just winged it. "…Should I just go with the short, sugar-coated version then? Because the silence is not cutting it, Kakashi-kun."

To my surprise, he simply buried his face into my hair, sighing almost dramatically. It kinda tickled, considering that Kakashi was still wearing his mask. Strangely, the action itself didn't bother me — if anything, a fond exasperation went through me as I decided to simply reach over and pat my friend's head, running my fingers through his silver hair.

In the end, I guess even the stoic Kakashi can be childish.

"…Keep it short then," he muttered dryly.

Well, I got permission. Hooray!

I just turned around in my makeshift seat to wrap my arms around Kakashi's neck in a gesture of appreciation. When it came down to it, I was just grateful Kakashi was holding out for as long as he was, since I could tell he was holding back a whole repertoire of insults/curses just to give me an answer. He was essentially working outside of his comfort zone considering how Rin and Obito were personality and skill-wise, and yet I could tell from his actions alone that he was trying to face it head on rather than run off. Sure, he was technically hugging me as a lifeline of sorts, but hey. The fact that he was really trying to be nice about the whole thing and not start something in comparison to canon Kakashi just really made my heart flutter in that happy way. "Thank you, Kakashi-kun. I love you a lot, you know?"

And I meant it. Kakashi was an important person to me, and I couldn't think of anything more fitting to say than that.

I wouldn't be Hoshino Tomoko without the masked ninja listening to my music all the time.

The silver haired Chunin blinked before scoffing and lightly bumping my cheek with his. "I know Tomoko. You don't have to make it so obvious."

"Hai hai, Kakashi-kun~!" I found myself giggling, tightening the hug on my best friend happily. "I just wanted to say it once."

In response, Kakashi scoffed again before wrapping his arms around my waist and squishing me to him. "You're seriously unbelievable, Tomoko."

The giggles just kept leaving my lips as I just snuggled closer to my best friend. "Says the guy hugging me while everybody's watching."

As if by magic, the ninja immediately pushed me away, almost forcefully by the shoulders, to look away with pink on his cheeks. It was a rather funny scene with the silver haired ninja for once being the embarrassed one, and I couldn't help the full-out laughter escaping me at this point. "…Tomoko." Kakashi deadpanned, hand over his masked mouth. "You're not helping."

"I-I'm sorry—"  _Pfft_. I would forever keep the image in my head. Kakashi, blushing up a storm while sitting on a picnic blanket, refusing to say a word. My other, past self probably would've tackle-hugged him by now because of how  _cute_  it was. "I-It's just —  _heh heh_  — your face—!" Oh god, my stomach was going to burn out soon from how hard I was laughing.

"…How did I end up with you again?" He deadpanned, hand over his face.

It took a moment for me to catch my breath, and by then, a large grin was on my face. "Well, I was just about to tell the story to everybody, so you just have to listen in, don't you?"

Kakashi sighed.

I just smiled happily and poked his masked cheek before turning around to face everybody else. To my surprise though, everyone was staring at us with varying degrees of interest and shock. Kushina-nee's face was the first that stood out to me, violet eyes glinting with something akin to approval. Minato-san had an expression stuck between fondness and surprise, blue eyes wide with some kind of recognition. On the other hand, Obito's face was the most comical, dark red crossing his face with his jaw literally on the ground. The only face that confused me was that of Rin's. From my past memories, I remembered the brunette medic being a combination of Hinata and Sakura, having a crush on Kakashi and yet being supportive of Obito. But her expression seemed  _sad_  somehow amongst the surprise, brown eyes shining with something I didn't fully grasp yet.

… _Don't tell me she's jealous of my bond with Kakashi?_

Then again, in my head, it made sense. Rin did have a crush on my silver-haired best friend, and when thinking about it, who wouldn't be jealous at the sight of their crush hanging out with someone else?

…Not to mention this wouldn't be the first time someone took my hugs as a sign of something else.

 _Probably have to handle that problem first_.

Because when thinking on it, I did love Kakashi in a way. But right now, it wasn't the way I loved Leo back in my past life. It wasn't the 'want to be with someone for the rest of their lives' feeling. If anything, it was the familiar 'familial/friendly' love I shared with my parents and most of the other regulars at Nagareboshi. It wasn't to the point of pure,  _pure_  love.

And right now, I wasn't sure if I was up for that kind of love yet. I had already loved once before — and yet here I was, living another life and wondering if he was okay where I had tragically left him.

Did I deserve someone's love in that way, especially in this world where as a civilian, you're basically a sitting duck that can't do jack shit?

Knowing how things would go in the supposed future of the ninja world didn't really help my case.

… _There's no way I'm burdening Kakashi with that kind of thought yet. I want to see him get through to canon first!_

I physically cleared my throat to push those thoughts away. With how the entire group was staring at me, it wasn't a good time to dwell on those kind of topics right now. "So… My first meeting with Kakashi-kun, huh?"

"Yeah!" Obito and Kushina-nee blurted in unison, even fist-pumping at the same time. The sudden shouts literally made me inch back from the volume, ears ringing.

_No wonder these two had a love-hate relationship in canon. They're literally two peas in a pod._

"Okay then…" I breathed in deeply before folding my legs underneath my torso, mentally preparing myself for the shortest story ever. Kakashi wouldn't appreciate more than the bare minimum anyway. "Basically, I met him about 4 years ago, when Sakumo-san, Kakashi-kun's father, brought him to Nagareboshi."

"4 years?" Rin was the one to speak up this time, brown eyes showing surprise. "You two knew each other since you were  _five_?"

"Basically," I smiled and shrugged my shoulders. "At the time, Sakumo-san brought Kakashi over to celebrate his graduation from the Academy, and I just played a song for him. Ever since, he's been one of the regulars at Nagareboshi Cafe."

"…That's it?" Obito said, disappointment in his voice. I just blinked and looked at him, only to be surprised at the purely  _dismayed_  face he was making.

Huh? Did I miss something? Because he wasn't supposed to be looking like that, last I checked. "Obito-kun?"

"It's just—" The Uchiha threw his hands in the air in frustration, goggles tilting down over his eyes. "You did the impossible, Tomoko-chan! You made Bakashi open up to you!"

_...Yeaaaaaah, I think I'm missing something here._

"What do you mean, Obito-kun?"

"Just — ARGH!" From the way Obito's face was turning, I would've thought he was suffering from a  _stomach ache_. "Kakashi barely talks to any of us! Not including Minato-sensei or any of the adults - but he never really did take Rin and I seriously, even if we worked together during the bell test! And yet  _you_ —" I found myself jumping at the eager finger point Obito was now turning on me. This was starting to turn into Phoenix Wright and I had no clue how to take that. "Tomoko-chan, you're just a civilian and yet you can  _hug_  the asshole without worrying about death!  _HOW?!_ "

I could only intelligently say, "Eh?"

Obito apparently was on a roll with this whole thing, continuing his small rant. "I mean — I would've thought that your best friend would be just as nice as you are, Tomoko-chan! Yet how did you get so close to Bakashi, the mask-wearing, most insufferable-ass ninja ever?!"

_...Okay. Is Obito becoming the next Apollo Justice?!_

Immediately, Rin glared at Obito before he could spout anymore. "Obito!" she said firmly, frown on her face. Thank goodness she stopped one side. But…

I blinked before registering a large shiver going down my spine. Nearby, a dark aura was starting to form around the mentioned Hatake, and my gut and mind were both in agreement.

_An angry Hatake appeared! What will you do?_

"…Say that again, I dare you Uchiha." Kakashi muttered darkly, eyes shadowed.

I didn't even think about it. I simply reached over to touch my friend's clenched fist with my hand, and it was like a miracle. The dark aura slowly began to fade while familiar silver orbs looked up to where I could see my reflection in them. "…Tomoko?" Kakashi murmured, voice quickly losing its hard edge.

"Don't get angry so quickly, Kakashi-kun. Just let me explain my part, okay?" I smiled sheepishly at him, squeezing his hand softly. He was really going through the ringer just with this first day. I just hope it won't get worse with each new interaction. All I could think of was,  _I don't want this rivalry to lead to Kannabi in canon all over again._  "It'll be for just a bit longer."

"..."

The silver-haired Chunin looked pointedly away from me, refusing to meet my eyes despite the hand-holding we were doing. I guess he was feeling a bit stubborn.

"I'll play a song for you once we get back home?" I offered dully, having already run out of options.

To my surprise, my best friend immediately turned his head to look at me with wide eyes, mouth open through his mask. It was a better reaction than what I was expecting, and I just scratched my cheek with my other hand. Might as well continue with honesty. "If you don't mind the entire team being there to celebrate the first official day of Team Minato, then yeah… I was planning to do an entire concert for you guys once we got back to Nagareboshi, but I can add a solo just for you, Kakashi-kun…"

"…You're not going to duck out on this, right?" Now I was feeling offended. Pouting, I just reached up to pinch the ninja's cheek, pulling as hard as I could.

"When have I ever ducked out on music for you, old friend? Of course I'm going to do it!"

I hid my inward thought of,  _Who do you take me for?!_  with a pout.

Apparently my determination was really noticeable because Kakashi started to chuckle to himself, lightly grabbing my pinching hand in his to squeeze gently.

"Alright, Tomoko, I get the point. Now hurry up and finish already."

 _Huh, even when saying something nice, he still has that sass of his._ I just rolled my eyes at him before turning around. Again, the same surprised audience look was on the rest of Team Minato's faces, and I couldn't help but feel a bit apprehensive.

"Wh-What is it?"

Minato-san was the first one to return to the world of the living, per say, blinking before smiling sheepishly and rubbing the back of his head. "S-Sorry about that, Tomoko-chan, we couldn't help but notice how you're so close to Kakashi."

 _Was it really that surprising?_ I just tilted my head.

"I mean, Tomoko-chan, you're the only one that we've seen that can hug Kakashi-kun that way!" Rin put her two cents in, something akin to awe in her brown eyes. "No one even in the Academy was able to do that!"

"…Is it really that awe-inspiring?" I said slowly, absently grabbing a muffin of my own. All I did was just really play music for Kakashi during our casual moments — nothing too outstanding. At least to me.

Apparently everyone else thought otherwise because they all simultaneously nodded. "…Okay…" I conceded quietly, raising an eyebrow before clearing my throat. Might as well take the chance to finish up this little tale anyway since Kakashi's long stare on my back was starting to get uncomfortable. "Anyway, to answer your questions…"

They all leaned into the center of the impromptu group circle curiously. Now I could say that I knew how canon Kakashi felt when Team 7 was trying to look under his mask — all the attention was on me, and I didn't know how I felt about it. If anything, it made me feel a bit more nervous than before.

As a result, I had to take a few moments to close my eyes and think. When looking back, why  _did_ Kakashi end up warming up to  _me_ , a civilian girl out of all people? All I did was really play piano…

But then again, he always did come by to talk to just me, didn't he? And then there was those moments where he didn't intentionally try to push me off when I tackle-hugged him.

Not to forget that time with Sakumo-san…

I hid a sigh.

_I really got myself deep in these ninja machinations without even meaning to, didn't I?_

In the end, I ended up opening my eyes to face the expectant audience with a sheepish smile, lightly bumping my head with a fist in a similar manner. "Sorry guys, looks like I'm keeping that one a secret~!"

" _HUH?!_ " To my surprise, Obito, Rin, and Kushina-nee all face planted into the picnic blanket, feet twitching in the air. " _Tomoko-chan!_ " Adding in their various protests of my name and actions, it was rather comical if not for me focusing on the two black sheep in the area.

The only ones exempt from this rather hilarious scene was Minato-san and Kakashi. The Yellow Flash himself didn't look that surprised - rather, his expression literally screamed understanding while a fond smile played on his lips. And then Kakashi. Oh boy, I knew I was going to save that image into my personal memory. He was looking at me in a mixture of surprise and warmth, silver eyes wide with some emotion I couldn't fully grasp. It appeared to be something akin to  _gratitude_ , and I just winked at him.

_Don't worry, Kakashi-kun, this story will just be between you and me._

There's just some things you don't share because they're so close and personal to you.

The memories of talking to Kakashi, to giving him a shoulder to cry on, to even waking him up every morning since we started living together to prepare for training or a mission.

Those were things that were very precious to me — and to be honest? I don't think Obito and Rin need to hear those things yet.

They need to work on teamwork together with my silver-haired best friend first.

I ended up taking the wrapper off the muffin in my hands and biting into it, chewing and swallowing slowly. Had to eat something considering I had yet to touch any of the bentos while talking and my stomach was complaining.

"Now then, there's still a lot of food, so how about you finish up and we can continue talking about something else?"

* * *

Uchiha Obito was just downright confused.

Who would've thought that Hoshino Tomoko, one of the sweetest girls he ever met, would have a best friend in  _Kakashi_  of all people?

The most insufferable, asshole ninja who was the first one to complain about Obito's lateness  _period_?

And don't get started on how Kakashi was a prodigy — Obito already heard and saw more than enough when they used to be in the same class during the Academy days. Just thinking about how the jerk was better than him skill-wise was enough to make his blood  _boil_.

His Chunin promotion at age  _six_ just added more oil to the flames.

That's why a part of him still kept wondering how such a kind, caring, and huggable girl such as Tomoko ended up befriending the ass. His jaw  _still_ ached from how it dropped so unceremoniously to the ground when the civilian girl jumped on his silver-haired teammate in a hug.

If only she didn't just decide to keep it to herself…! Now he was more curious about how the two got to know each other more than what was underneath the asshole's mask!

Then again, when thinking about, it made sense. Kakashi always did enjoy quiet spaces, and Tomoko did provide that kind of environment, right? Nagareboshi Cafe was always popular amongst the general populace of Konoha, ninja or civilian, for its welcoming nature and beautiful music. Hell, even when Obito first bumped into the girl, she didn't get as angry as others would have been, giving such an intense and amazing song on the piano as a gift for coming back to apologize.

Not to mention Rin enjoyed it too. Obito had the memory of Rin's happy, awe-filled face burned into his head from that day, and no matter what, it was always a bright spot to look back to when life became difficult to deal with.

But Obito never really did see Kakashi around Nagareboshi. Heck, Obito almost always vented his frustrations about the silver haired chunin  _to_  the civilian pianist, and she didn't say anything about it! She just smiled and continued giving him advice like she always did!

The Uchiha could swear his heart dropped to the pits of his stomach at the sight of the silver-haired Chunin talking to Tomoko-chan so casually. And  _then_  finding out they were best friends  _and_  living together?!

Obito would have mentally died from the mess-up.

His thoughts could essentially be summed up as:

… _So in the end, I was insulting Tomoko-chan's best friend this entire time and I didn't know it…_

He couldn't help but feel ashamed.

Why did it have to be Kakashi? Why did his rival have to be the best friend of one of his precious people?

Strangely, at the same time, though, Obito could unconsciously understand why.

"So, how do you guys feel about a concert to celebrate the formation of Team Minato?"

Hoshino Tomoko had that kind of aura every time she smiled. Even when dealing with the worst of Kakashi's temper, she had this sort of calming effect on everyone around her. Just putting a hand on Kakashi's fist was all it took for that disastrous killing intent to go away, and Obito couldn't help but sigh in relief.

He may not understand the strange friendship between the two of them, but at that moment, he couldn't be more grateful for it.

It felt like he just escaped a big beating in training thanks to the civilian girl.

It just felt strange though. Civilians usually didn't know the entire stories of ninjas' lives, and yet here Tomoko was, joining Team Minato for a group lunch and talking with Rin and Kakashi rather eagerly.

It was as if Tomoko saw him — no, the entirety of Team Minato — as more than just shinobi. Every time those blue eyes turned on him, it was as if she knew so much more than he could understand. Even when giving him advice while playing the piano, those same blue orbs seemed to say so much more than just the usual sympathy and pity.

It was as if she knew something more outside of her civilian life.

"Well, here's a huge concert to celebrate Team Minato! I hope you all work hard for a bright future in store!"

But Obito decided not to think on it for now. To be honest, the beautiful music coming from Tomoko's fingertips was far too loud to ignore, and hey. It had been a long day - handling the bell test and working with his new teammates.

He would probably think on his relationship with Rin and Kakashi another time. They were enjoying the music already, relaxing in their seats near the piano.

And maybe later, he could try persuading Tomoko to tell him her secret. Because he wanted to protect his friends on missions. And if it meant working with Bakashi so that they all could come home safe, he would be fine with that.

After all, a ninja that couldn't save his friends wouldn't be worthy of the name Hokage!


	19. Just The Way You Are

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The main piano track for this chapter is the Piano Guys' cover of Bruno Mars's Just the Way You Are, mainly for the mood of this part but also for a moment of silence. Recently pianist Jon Schmidt's daughter, Annie, went missing a few weeks ago and was found dead on the hiking trail she went missing on — apparently due to a hiking accident, but still. I can't imagine how much pain the Schmidt family is going through, so this is my small dedication to them. Hopefully Annie finds peace wherever she is now.
> 
> On the other hand, the song that Tomoko specifically sings in this chapter is Nana Mizuki's Innocent Starter from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha. The original song is absolutely amazing, but for this chapter, I would actually point you towards AngelThea's cover of the song tuned to the Orgol Mix from the Movie 1st since it seems to fit Tomoko's mindset for this specific part. However, each version works, and I encourage you to check out both! Note that the translated lyrics themselves come from Anime Lyrics dot Com, so please explore their findings too! Please enjoy!

_Chapter 17: Just the Way You Are_

It was about a few days after the creation of Team Minato that I found myself becoming a part-time therapist for free.

Now, that's a weird thing to say considering my original position as official pianist at Nagareboshi Cafe, but I'm being completely serious here.

Apparently even with my friendship mellowing out Kakashi, the silver-haired Chunin was still at odds with Obito. Maybe it's because this Obito still had his habit of coming 'fashionably late' due to helping out one old lady after another. Or maybe it was because Obito kept fumbling in almost everything he did, whether it was sparring or even throwing shuriken.

I honestly thought it was because Obito still felt a large rivalry with my best friend, wanting to beat him in almost every process possible. Then again, they  _were_  nine years old, and what boy wouldn't feel jealous about another guy taking all the attention?

From what I remembered of canon, Obito was the black sheep of the Uchiha Clan. The famed elites known for providing security and some of the most  _fucked_   _up_  plot twists in the original Narutoverse. And yes, I  _mean_  "fucked up." He wanted to become Hokage to prove to everyone that he's not just the sore spot of the Uchihas, but a famed, powerful ninja in his own right.

No wonder he was Naruto's predecessor in terms of teams "trying to replicate the Sannin." Kakashi stood out in almost everything he did, no matter how much effort he put in, and for Obito who had to try as hard as he could just to get to the tip of that iceberg, seeing it was obviously infuriating. Kakashi's nonchalant demeanor didn't seem to help  _anything_  since to the Uchiha, it probably looked like my best friend was mocking him.

Then again, being Kakashi's best friend, I could only guess that the Hatake really couldn't care less instead of just mocking the Uchiha outright. He didn't see Obito as a huge pain in the ass in comparison to his canon counterpart, which was an obvious improvement in my opinion, but he still found some of his actions annoying apparently.

The small, almost permanent scowl Kakashi had on his masked face when coming home from his first D-rank with Team Minato seemed to be proof of that.

* * *

The front door swung open with an audible creak. "…I'm home."

The familiar voice made me jump up and run over with a smile. "Welcome back, Kakashi-kun! How was it?"

And yet for some reason, my best friend didn't look happy, closing the door behind him with tiredness lacing his every movement. "…"

I could literally hear the "dot-dot-dot" without him even needing to open his mouth.

"…Kakashi-kun?"

Kakashi just sighed deeply. "…Just don't ask, Tomoko. It hasn't been the best of days."

 _Team Minato shenanigans then._ I found myself smiling sheepishly. "Do you want a song or a hug?"

He only crossed his arms over his chest, looking away. "…A hug sounds nice."

* * *

I'm happy that Kakashi has been more receptive to my hugs lately, but now I'm just worried if he's just using me as a lifeline when he can't handle this kind of stuff.

I know Obito and Rin aren't inherently bad people — oh no! — it's just that I think the skill gap's really been getting to Kakashi lately. Before Team Minato was formed, I recall the silver-haired Chunin being able to handle mostly C-rank Missions quite easily, but now? Kakashi had to help two new Genin from his former Academy class - one who idolized him and the other who, quite honestly, hated his guts - with D-Rank chores, essentially, so it probably felt like a lot to him.

Then, there's Obito himself. Oh boy.

When thinking on it, his thought process probably would be like: " _How can I become Hokage if I can't surpass this jerk?!"_  Or something like that.

…Basically prepubescent boy rivalry at its finest. Add in ninja skills, possibly lethal ninja tools, and society's views on how you have to get stronger  _just_  to get respect, and mix together.

The final product is basically a love-hate relationship and/or rivalry blown  _way_ out of proportion.

…And why, oh  _why_ , did you have to add a love triangle?

The way Rin was handled in the original canon was already messy as is, considering that she was Sakura's predecessor. Luckily, her crush on Kakashi wasn't as bad as, say,  _Sakura's_  was on Sasuke, but even then, her affections just added more onto Obito's reasoning as to why he was so jealous of the Hatake in the first place.

Rin herself was just fine, though — thankfully. Even back in canon, Team Minato mainly worked — or perhaps,  _only_ worked —  _because_  she was the emotional center that held the two boys together. Had Madara simply decided not to set his sights on the resident Uchiha and target her for the Three Tails, I had a feeling canon would've turned out so much better.

But now? I wasn't sure anymore. I knew that my presence alone already changed things, considering that Sakumo-san was still alive and Kakashi hadn't gone all "rules are the golden standard" phase. However, a part of me still felt uncertain. Before the formation of Team Minato, I was sure that I had a small friendship of sorts with Rin and Obito, but now? It felt a bit strained if not distant.

…I honestly blame society for that. Ninja were raised to be observant, and I had a feeling that after deciding to keep the true origins of my relationship with Kakashi a secret, they were trying to scope me out for answers - causing the small rift.

Sure, it's a small issue, but what about situations such as Kannabi?

The last thing I wanted to see was the happenings that led up to canon, especially if I had the power to do something about it.

I was able to save Sakumo-san and Kakashi a lot of pain already - I didn't want to see them or any other person go through more.

But how was I supposed to help the predecessors of Team 7 when they all had their own issues as a result of society and quite possibly, the shortcomings of my being a civilian?

Sometimes, I wanted to vent. Vent through yelling and shaking my fists at the sky.

…Great job, Konoha. No, scratch that. Great job ninja world, in handling these kinds of conflicts considering that you let Sasuke defect and Obito literally turn into Tobi in another timeline. You deserve a medal for being the "most crapsack, emotionally deprived world" period. Aside from places with the zombie apocalypse, mind you. Why did you have to wait on  _Naruto of all people_  to just realize that things weren't working?

Hell, why do you have to make so many people suffer before the whole damn thing needs improvements?! It took like — hell —  _four-five_  generations of ninja and spilled blood for Naruto to come around? I don't even know anymore because by this point I'll be ranting angrily to you, unproductively too, and not focusing on my job for the time being.

…Back to the point. It was these thoughts in mind that even after the whole concert I gave to Team Minato for their first day as a new team, I couldn't sleep well that night.

If anything, the thoughts just kept going through my head to where sleep didn't really come until hours after the others in the house fell asleep — Kakashi and Sakumo included. Most of the time, I was closing my eyes in an attempt for the familiar quiet lull to come — but it barely even touched me that night. In the end, I was left looking up at the bare ceiling, trying to sort out my thoughts.

Before in my previous life, sorting my head would be an easy matter since all I had to worry about was really school work and trying to pass the next midterm. Not having to deal with precognition and knowing what might happen to your friends in the future and what you can do to prevent all that.

Minato-san, Kushina-san, Obito-kun, Rin-chan, and Kakashi-kun deserved so much better than what canon dealt out to them.

I didn't even realize tears were running down my cheeks and hitting my futon pillow until the first sniffles started escaping my lips. The heavy weight on my heart just didn't help, since it reminded me how much was on my mind and how it  _just_  wouldn't go away.

Could I really help?

_I just don't want to fail everyone again…_

Memories of that old universe went through my head.

_"Obito!"_

Kakashi at that rock, trying desperately to push it off.

 _"_ … _No…why?"_

Rin-chan, crying. I could only hope that she wouldn't look like that. I already knew I didn't want to see her like how she was in Kannabi.

_"…I see now. I'm in hell."_

No, Obito-kun, don't say that. Especially while carrying Rin-chan's dead body. You can't betray the village like Sasuke. Please…

_"Naruto…This is your dad. Listen…To your nagging mother."_

Minato-san! Don't give up and die! You need to raise your son right!

I wasn't expecting the last image going through my head.

_"Be Vy! Please hang on! Don't go!"_

_Mommy…_

By the time I had registered the tears rolling down my face, small beams of sunlight were already starting to shine through the window. A part of me didn't want to, but I knew I had to get up.

Luckily, it was still early, and from what I could hear, Dad and Sakumo-san were still lightly snoring. There wasn't any noise from Mom or Kakashi's sides, but I wouldn't take any chances. Dawn was coming, and honestly, I needed some fresh air. Forcing myself to take a deep breath, I wiped at the tears fiercely, pushing back the blanket to put on some slippers and gently walk out of my room, white nightgown and all — even ignoring the hair ribbon I left at my bedside.

Like my room, for once, the house was quiet. All I could hear was some snoring from the men's sides and the soft chirping of birds. Despite the relative peace, I did my best to walk silently, carefully slipping past Kakashi and Sakumo-san's shared room to head downstairs. Nagareboshi itself shared a similar atmosphere of quiet, and even though the piano appeared as welcoming as ever, I didn't really think about going to it.

There was too much in mind for me to properly focus on choosing a song to play on those beautiful keys.

Instead, I just walked outside the cafe doors to just stand under the patio, taking a breath. Even though it was spring, the air smelled as though it had just rained, dew covering nearby leaves and soaking the topsoil of the pavement. The shopping center was completely silent of other people, most of the street signs dark without any electricity.

Even though I should've felt lonely at the lack of people, instead, my heart just seemed much lighter.

For once, it felt peaceful in the streets of Konoha.

Like there wasn't going to be threats of Kurama rampaging over it in 4-5 years of time or facing an entire massacre of a clan.

Before I even knew it, the song was already leaving my lips, my voice surprisingly steady through each note.

_"Hugging my knees in the corner,_

_I was always shaking from my unease._

_Knowing the 'truth' is frightening, so I closed the door."_

Me, hiding who I really was and my foreknowledge from everyone I loved just because I was scared.

_"I sought a place to belong in a gentle lie, and took refuge in my dreams._

_This sea of loneliness that nobody else knew was dyed a deep blue._

_With my earnest desire to hide my loneliness,_

_I wounded your heart."_

How would everyone feel when figuring out my secrets? Mom, Dad, Sakumo-san, Minato-san, Kushina-san, Obito-kun, Rin-chan…

What about Kakashi?

_"In the secret inside my eyes, in the reality behind my smile that draws you in,_

_There is a tender love that I'm going to send to you._

_If you touch it, that fragile warmth will pour out into the present from the past._

_I'll always be by your side, so don't feel lost in the sad shadows."_

At least, I wanted to hope that I could be by everyone's side when the time came. When they needed me most.

_"Like a child, just chasing my dreams,_

_I couldn't find anything._

_All I did was lose sight of what's important to me."_

But by focusing on everyone else, was I really making  _myself_  happy? This world in particular isn't fond of giving permanent happiness - and dedication often led to death from the shinobi side. Was  _my_  dedication well-founded?

_"The happiness that definitely exists in the 'obvious' and the 'normal,'_

_With power can be protected, I wanted to obtain that, so I head straight and live on._

_I won't get lost. My gaze is only on that 'one' answer._

_In the red dawn sky, there is painted a rainbow that wraps around all the darkness._

_This small courage surpasses words._

_Even if the future is taken captive, even if it vanishes in the distance, this prayer will never cease._

_I want to send my sincere feelings to you."_

This song said everything I wanted to say. More than anything. I wanted the people I loved in my old life to know I was okay. I wanted to let the people I loved now know what exactly was going on in my head and confide in them about all my worries.

I didn't want to hold it all in my thoughts to suffer by myself.

Crying alone was already painful enough.

_"I whisper to you, the person who gave me my 'beginning,'_

_Keep the promise that we made just between ourselves._

_The magic of eternity that never changes._

_Even if the future is taken captive, even if it vanishes in the distance,_

_I will remember your clear voice._

_Call my name._

_And smile like you did that day."_

The Naruto-verse — no,  _Konoha_ , gave me my new "beginning." In a way. I don't even know why I was brought here in the first place after dying — considering I had barely  _any_  fighting ability, as Tomoko or as Vy. But I was here anyway, as Hoshino Tomoko. It wouldn't be good to doubt myself anymore.

I gave myself a purpose by becoming Nagareboshi's pianist and reaching out to so many people.

I made the choice to befriend Kakashi and the others.

So in the end, it was all my decision to see how this world would unravel its machinations. Leaving now wouldn't be a good choice after convincing Sakumo-san to keep living, now, would it?

Before I could add more to my thought process, the soft touch of a hand landed on my shoulder while the familiar scent of pines filled my nose. "…Tomoko?"

I didn't even have to turn to know who it was, luckily, considering all my limbs ended up freezing at the sudden touch. "…Kakashi-kun?" Despite the early morning, my best friend sounded completely awake, having more than enough strength to lightly turn me around to look at me, silver eyes shining with concern.

Why was he looking at me like that?

"What's wrong, Tomoko? You're not usually up this early."

_It's honestly hard to talk about. How can I tell you that I'm a reincarnation gone wrong and that I knew you before from a story that I never fully believed in? I'm not the Tomoko you know so well, and yet you come out here._

I couldn't help but look over my best friend in an attempt to form some words. Even though he just was wearing a black tank top and casual pants (accompanied by his usual black mask), Kakashi looked like he could be ready for any situation, muscles tense enough to react at any moment. I knew I should've been comforted at the sight of my best friend, but my self-consciousness just didn't feel  _right_  about it.

In the end, I looked away, guilt gnawing at my thoughts. It didn't feel right keeping my friend waiting for a response, but the replies I had in my head just weren't working. "…I'm not really sure what to tell you, Kakashi-kun," I admitted slowly.  _Ugh_ , even when saying it, my voice felt like sandpaper coming out of my throat. "I just had some trouble sleeping last night."

The Chunin blinked before softly sighing, both hands now landing on my shoulders. "Do you want to talk about it?"

The offer was tempting. It really was, especially when coming from my best friend. The Kakashi from canon would probably never ask me that question, and to be honest, I felt both honored and saddened.

_Would you still accept me even when knowing what I really am? A fraud that might've taken someone else's place?_

"…I'm not really sure on it yet, Kakashi-kun," The reply just sounded painful despite my being honest about it, and by that point, I could feel the tears starting to build up in my eyes again. "I don't even understand it myself, so I can't really talk about it just yet." The temptation to cry was really on the horizon, but I didn't want to do that.

Not when Kakashi was still looking at me with that same worried glance in his silver eyes.

_Your life has just started getting better, so you shouldn't have to look so upset like that, Kakashi. Not over someone like me._

"…Is there anything I can do then?" He murmured softly.

I gulped, attempting to keep the lump in my throat at bay. Even though I knew he was trying to help, his responses sounded so similar to another boy I once knew.

And with that, his voice echoed.

_"Hey dear, what's the matter? Don't hide it from your boyfriend, okay?"_

Leo…

In the end, the reply came out rather small and high-pitched. It probably was a selfish request, but I couldn't stop myself. "…Kakashi-kun, could you hug me?"

To my surprise, my best friend didn't hesitate, quietly wrapping his arms around my torso to squish me to his figure, letting my head rest against his shoulder. The scent of sweat, pines, and just the presence of  _Kakashi_ filled my nose, and for once, my heart didn't feel as heavy as it was throughout the past 12 hours. A shaky breath left my lips as I buried my face into his tank top, keeping sniffles at bay while clutching him desperately.

… _It looks like this is affecting me more than I thought._

In the end, I could only think of one thing to say. "…Thank you, Kakashi-kun. I-I owe you one later, okay?"

The Chunin simply scoffed before lightly ushering the both of us back into the building, hands running through my tangled hair. Huh? "You don't owe me anything, Tomoko." To my surprise, he pulled away to simply rest his forehead against mine, forcing me to look into familiar silver eyes. Resolute eyes. "You told me that you chose to care for me. You chose to worry for me, to become my friend, Tomoko. So get it in your head that it's the same for me, okay?"

_Huh?_

Kakashi breathed softly, air gently fanning my face while he closed his eyes for a moment, voice still quiet. "It was my choice to come out here, Tomoko. It was my choice to walk out here so early in the morning to find you when you weren't in your room. It was my choice that I became your friend, okay? So, get it through your dense mind that I'm here by my own choice, alright?" He opened his eyes and I couldn't help but notice how much  _emotion_  and  _sincerity_  was in his silver orbs. "So if you need help, you can come to me. Don't hide it all by yourself — if you need me, I'll be there, alright?"

The tears were already blurring my vision by the time those words registered in my heart.

… _Looks like I'm blessed to have good friends too, no matter what life I'm living._

I could only shakily smile and pull the Chunin into another hug, only one thing left to say. "Thank you Kakashi-kun. I-I love you a lot, you know?"

From the close distance, I could feel the soft smile on Kakashi's masked face as he simply wrapped his arms around my waist again, squishing me to him. "I know, Tomoko." A soft sigh tickled the tips of my ears, familiar warmth spreading through me as a result of the hug.

"I love you too."

* * *

"Kakashi, I hereby challenge you to another match!"

"…Why?"

"To bet on our springtimes of youth, of course! It's been awhile since our last match, so we need to settle the score!"

A bored frown was on my face as I looked over the scene.

"…This is normal, right, Tomoko-chan?" I just looked over at the sheepish medic standing next to me and simply sighed.

"At this point, it is." I found myself saying dryly. "You'll get used to it, Rin-chan."

"…I'm just surprised you're so nonchalant about this, Tomoko-chan. How did you get used to this kind of stuff?" Rin simply motioned to the Green Beast of Konoha and my best friend with shaky hands, and I just sighed again, shoulders slouching in my kimono dress.

"When they drag you into being the host of their various competitions, then it's easy to get used to this kind of stuff, dear." I just closed my eyes to shake my head, scratching my cheek with a finger. "First it was a race to the Hokage Monument, then it was a fast-food eating competition, then it was rock-paper-scissors, then it was push-ups, and then—"

"—I get the idea, Tomoko-chan," Rin deadpanned, cutting me off while quickly adapting my tired look to accommodate the purple tattoos on her cheeks. "You don't have to give all the details."

"…Well, at least it can't get any worse!" Yep. At this point, I was completely okay with invoking Murphy's Law.

"Don't tempt them, Tomoko-chan."

…Famous last words, Rin-chan.

"Hey guys! I'm sorry for being late — HEY! WHO'S THIS BEAST-FACE?!"

I facepalmed just as Rin took on a grimace.

… _Why did you choose_  this  _time to show up, Obito?!_

"Oh hello, fellow Konoha shinobi! I am Might Guy, the Green Beast of the Leaf, and I'm currently challenging Kakashi to a match to show off our Youth! Is it alright if we could talk another time?"

"Like hell, you beast! I challenged Kakashi first!"

"I believe we're at an misunderstanding. What is your name, fellow friend?"

"I'm Uchiha Obito, the man that's going to become Hokage! Now  _please_  get out of the way and let me take on Bakashi first!"

"I'm sorry, Obito-kun, your youth is wonderful, but I'm Kakashi's Eternal Rival! I believe I have the right to challenge him first!"

"Well, I'm his teammate, Beast-Face, so I have the right to do so first!"

"No, me first!"

"No, me first!"

Kakashi sighed, facepalming. "…How did I end up with classmates like these?"

…Boys. I just glanced at Rin-chan and didn't even react when Minato-san poofed into existence behind us, smiling sheepishly. This day was already turning out weird. "Did I miss anything, girls?"

"Nope," we both answered in unison, looking at the scene again. At this point, Obito and Guy looked to be on the verges of a fist fight, and at this point, I was just getting pissed off.

"…Minato-san," I started slowly.

The Yellow Flash turned to look at me, blue eyes blinking in confusion. "Yes, Tomoko-chan?"

I sighed. "Could I leave it to you for separating Obito-kun and Guy-kun? Right now, I'm feeling very irritated, and honestly. I'm just going to borrow Rin-chan and Kakashi-kun to let them relax at Nagareboshi." And I completely meant to "borrow" them if it meant letting them stop looking so tired all the time. Or just giving them some peacetime. "I'll be playing the piano as always, so if you could bring the two there later, it's appreciated."

By the time I finished, I didn't even look back at the Jounin's fishlike expression, simply grabbing Rin's hand in my left and walking over to grab Kakashi's hand in my right to go in the direction of Nagareboshi. Essentially bringing both of them along with me on the trek back home.

 _While_  ignoring the two boys still arguing it out on who would face Kakashi first.

…Note to you all, being a mediator is hard. Luckily, starting with piano music, especially a piece from the Piano Guys, is a good start to resolving tension.

Might as well do what I can if it means the future will be somewhat better than how canon is.

…Hopefully I'm doing enough.


	20. The Reality of War

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. Any concepts/ideas mentioned in this fanfiction that seem to be borrowed from another media/piece of continuity - note that I don't mean to plagiarize anything or anybody in any way! This fanfic was made for entertainment purposes, not for pissing off others! So yeah!
> 
> The main theme for this chapter is omega penn's piano cover of Phantom Minds from the Movie 1st of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha. The main other song mentioned in this chapter is a piano cover of K-On's Go! Go! Maniac, so I would point you towards Animenz Piano Sheets' version of it. Please enjoy!
> 
> Note: There may be some sensitive material/subject matter covered in this chapter due to the world we've specifically covering and the timeline Civilian Pianist is set in. Namely, there will a trigger warning for this chapter, specifically for a lot of curse words, physical assault, and possible references to trauma for the sake of world building and character development. If you don't like this kind of material, then I recommend you to look away. You have been forewarned.

_Chapter 18: The Reality of War_

It started out as a normal day. If anything, I wouldn't have thought it would end the way it did.

When starting out, it was the usual routine. Get up from bed, brush my teeth, and get dressed. Then, it was going around and waking everyone else up, namely Sakumo-san and Kakashi, to get ready for the day's events. Even if it was Friday, the day before the weekend, Sakumo-san still had an Academy class to teach and I recall Kakashi had another D-rank mission and training session scheduled with Team Minato.

Afterwards, it was time to prepare breakfast with Mom. I never really did help out too much with breakfast in my past life just because my old Mom did it all by herself (which is still amazing to me), but this time, I wanted to help out. Today was mainly oyakodon (chicken and egg topped on white rice) with miso soup, made from leftover vegetables, and broiled fish, so I was mainly left with prep work such as cooking the rice and preparing all the vegetables.

…While standing on a step stool. Even as a 9 year old, I was only really up to the lower half of Mom's chest, so I couldn't really reach as much as I would've liked.

_Really want that growth spurt soon…_

And yes, before you ask, I have been drinking my milk. Unlike a certain Fullmetal Alchemist, I  _liked_ the drink, okay? Don't harp on it.

"Thank you again, Hikari~" It was around this time Dad would finally be up, messy brown head of hair and all, going around to kiss Mom before snuggling me. "And hello, sweetie~!"

"Hello, daddy!" I always find myself chirping back.

"Breakfast will be ready in a bit, dear," Mom commented in that soft way of hers, looking at Dad with a loving smile. "Make sure to set up the table and check on Sakumo-kun and Kakashi-kun, ok?"

After about half an hour, the entire house would be sitting down at the living room table to have a breakfast together. Sometimes it would be quiet with only the sounds of clicking chopsticks, but today was different with various debriefs from each person in the house about their plans for the day.

"Well, it's going to be another day with the kids at the Academy," Sakumo-san started, absently chewing on a piece of fish. "Turns out most of them are really enjoying using the practice tantos I put out recently. Seems kenjutsu really fits with their fighting styles and the Academy style taijutsu already taught to them. The other Academy sensei seem to be appreciating it too."

"You talking about the tantos you commissioned from Jim?" Dad questioned, chicken piece halfway towards his mouth.

"Yeah, thanks for the recommendation, Judai." Sakumo-san smiled proudly, a happy aura around him. "Turns out he's more than just your average wood-metal worker. I never thought you would've gotten to know him considering your position now."

"Eh," Dad shrugged nonchalantly, swallowing some rice with a cheerful grin. "I have my ways."

"Good to hear, Dad," Kakashi piped in, grin on his face. For once, he wasn't wearing his mask, and it overall felt very cheerful in the room. "At least there will be more shinobi graduating with better skills for the field."

"Speaking about that," Mom interjected gently, looking towards my best friend. "Kakashi-kun, you have another training session with Team Minato today, right? Do you have everything you need?"

"Hikari-san," Kakashi gave her a half-lidded, exasperated glance in response. "I know what I'm doing — don't worry. I already packed more than enough."

I couldn't help but put in my two cents. "Including bandages and polishing tools for your kunai and shuriken, Kakashi-kun?"

"Not you too, Tomoko," my best friend said flatly. "I checked with Dad already, I should be fine."

"Do you need me to stop by with lunch again?" I continued, ignoring his half-lidded stare. Hey, I had a legitimate reason to ask considering the  _last time_  lunch went with Team Minato. I never knew Obito could eat  _that_ much food — the six-bento-box package Kushina-san and I worked on in a few hours disappeared in only 30 minutes!

"Tomoko," Kakashi was visibly frowning by now, putting down his chopsticks to reach over and pinch my cheek.  _Ack!_  Why the cheek.  _Why_. "It's fine, really. Minato-sensei said that he'd be taking us out for lunch after the mission anyway."

I couldn't help the large pout on my face as I stared at him, eyebrow raised. "Okay…I'll still see you this afternoon at Nagareboshi, right?"

Hey, before you harp on me — I had to make sure the routine was still there, even if he was heading out more often. I don't know about you, but a 9 year old girl can't help but miss her best friend, okay?

"No changes there," Kakashi said, having already finished his breakfast. Before putting his mask back on, he gave me a soft smile, reaching over to flick my forehead. "I'll be fine, Tomoko — it's just another D-Rank. I'll see you later today, okay?"

_What is it with people and my head?_

I ended up pushing the thought to the side to smile back and pull my best friend into a hug, wrapping my arms around his neck. "I'll see you later then, Kakashi-kun. I love you."

I could feel Kakashi tense for a moment at my actions before relaxing and sighing. "I love you too, Tomoko. I'll see you later," he murmured back, hands reaching over to lightly pat my back.

I just never thought that I would value those words so much until after it happened.

* * *

After Kakashi and Sakumo-san left the house to handle their own duties, I was left opening Nagareboshi with Mom and Dad. While they handled ushering in the hired help and cleaning most of the home front, I had to change into the main Nagareboshi kimono dress for another day filled with piano music. Since it was spring, I went to the Leafeon dress again, using a green hair ribbon for my hair before heading out and cleaning the piano. From the looks of it, it was going to be a long day since there was already a crowd waiting outside at the main patio of the cafe.

Then again, with Konoha at war, we needed as much morale as we could get.

Before Mom went over to the front to turn the "CLOSED" sign around, she turned to look at me with a warm smile. "Ready, Tomoko-chan?"

"Ready, Mom!"

And at the time, I really did feel ready for anything.

Why did the world have to prove me wrong otherwise?

Surprisingly, the day passed fairly quickly, with each song I played adding to the time. Initially, I started with reruns of previous songs, including the  _Pokémon Center theme_ ,  _Dearly Beloved_ , and  _Let's Just Live_. But to my surprise, some of the regulars started coming by and requesting more cheery songs, and I found my memories turning to pieces including the famous  _Linus and Lucy_ from Charlie Brown and  _Fuwa Fuwa Time_  from K-On to match.

It was only when the sun was starting to set, with the fading beams of red shining into the cafe, that it happened.

I was just in the middle of another song request, where a female ninja specifically came by asking for the most happiest song I could think of. Honestly, the only thing I could think of was  _Go! Go! Maniac_ from K-On's 2nd season soundtrack, and I was in the middle of playing the most upbeat part when I heard it.

"What's the point of playing all that happy-go-lucky  _bullshit?!_ "

I swore my heart froze in place, my hands stopping over the keys.

_W-What…?_

"I mean, really?!" I couldn't even find the strength in me to turn around on the piano bench. The voice was so sudden, so  _dark_  — even as Vy, I never heard anyone speak like that. It sounded like a man, but who— "You motherfuckers have the time to just relax and listen to this crap?! Konoha's at goddamn WAR right now!"

By then, I could only really breathe shakily since a large lump decided to show up in my throat. My heart  _and_ subconsciousness were both screaming at me to say  _something_ , anything to make it stop, anything to properly  _defend_ the music that I have been doing for the past  _nine years_ , but my voice just got lost in all the chaos.

"Hey, what's your problem, asshole?!" the original requester shouted back, looking a bit peeved herself. "We're all trying to take a breather here — I don't see what's wrong with that!"

"What's wrong with that…?" To add to the horror creeping on my mind, that same voice started to  _laugh_. The laugh wasn't like any of the ones Dad would do when I messed up on something or the quiet ones Kakashi let out when something looked silly.

This one was  _cold_.

"People are dying out on the frontlines,  _bitch_ , and you're here lying on your ass listening to this useless shit!"

Why wasn't the voice  _going away?_  If anything, the same person continued to laugh loudly,  _mockingly_ with how it drowned out any sense of even  _protesting_ , and with the sudden silence in the entire cafe due to the broken atmosphere, it kept echoing in my ears. I didn't even have the will to look behind me since I knew the instigator was sitting around in that area. "Sheesh, all you  _motherfuckers_  have it easy! Being able to sit down, have a drink, and not have to worry about the blood of shit staining your hands! Why listen to this  _civilian crap_  when you could head out and work like the trash you should be!"

"Dude, that's going too far!" Another man was speaking, but I could barely register it in my ears. If anything, my body was still frozen as tears were starting to form in my eyes.

… _My music…? All my work…is crap…?_

My hands unconsciously clenched into fists.

 _Say something, me! Say that it's wrong! PLEASE_.

And yet my vocal cords could do nothing but squeak.

Then a lot of things happened all at once.

First up, I could register a whole bunch of what felt like  _pitch_ dark aura flaring in the atmosphere. Then, a rough hand I didn't recognize grabbed my neck to lift me up into the air, and I found myself choking. I didn't even have the chance to think about  _where it came from_  or to even  _run_. I was sitting at the piano one moment, the next, I'm trying to  _breathe_ through the hands clutching at my neck, clutching hard enough to where I could've sworn I tasted  _metal_ in the back of my throat. From the recoil, I couldn't even open my eyes, only faintly smelling the scent of alcohol and dirt in front of my face. The grip was so tight, I couldn't even feel my limbs as my mind pushed to try regaining my senses.

_**OPEN YOUR EYES, TOMOKO!** _

_But it hurts…! I can't breathe!_

The energy was slowly leaving me as my hands feebly attempted to peel the large fingers away from my neck. I could've sworn I started wheezing in an attempt to  _try_ getting oxygen back into my lungs.

"See, you fuckers?! This  _wench_  could easily die with just a hand! Do you really want to relax knowing someone like me could take her away?! Start working  _harder_ , you bitches, or I'll kill her right now!"

The realization was dull as saliva dribbled down my chin from the lack of air.

_I'm going to die._

_No… I don't want to die here…_

The tears were already streaming down my face as my lungs started to shrivel, memories of smoke and blood filling my head.

_Not again…_

_Mom… Dad…_

The memory of a silver-head went through my mind, and I wanted to scream.

 _Kakashi_ … _!_

Black dots were already filling my vision when a familiar voice rang out.

"LET HER GO!"

A fierce CHOP noise sounded near my right ear, and the next thing I knew, air was filling my shrunken lungs again, the tight grip on my neck suddenly gone. I was falling now. With my only support in the air gone, I was expecting to feel the hard ground of the stage underneath me, but instead, I landed in familiar, muscular arms.

With the tough landing, I found myself coughing. Saliva was filling the inside of my mouth again, and a part of me just felt like I had to vomit. My lungs greedily gulped in whatever air they could get, and the final result was that it sounded like I was wheezing, even with my hands covering my lips as much as possible to not make a worse mess of things.

_Holy shit._

"—moko-chan?! Tomoko-chan, are you  _okay_?!"

_Minato-san…?_

Once the coughing fit finally stopped, I hesitantly opened my eyes, and even through the tears, I could make out the familiar spiky blonde hair and blue orbs. "Tomoko-chan, if you can hear me, blink once, please!"

Instinctively, I blinked once.

The blond Jounin let out a soft sigh before squishing me to the front of his green flak jacket. "Thank  _god_ …"

"M-M-Minato-san?!" I squeaked finally, voice hoarse from just getting my bearings back. I wanted to feel relieved, but it wasn't  _over_ yet. It didn't  _feel_ over. "Wh-What happened—?!"

All that was going through my head was adrenaline and the desire to figure out  _what_ the fuck just happened. How was it that in my own  _home_ , I was nearly  _strangled_ to death in a more pathetic fashion than  _my own past death_? I needed answers.

And yet, when I attempted to get back to my feet and turn around, my eyes got covered by the ninja's large hands.

"Don't look, Tomoko-chan,  _please_." It was the first time I heard the Jounin sound so  _desperate_. "It's not something for a civilian girl to see."

But in that split second I had before the hands covered my eyes, I saw it anyway.

Kakashi's back was facing me, the visible glint of a kunai in his hands while his body was crouched in a defensive position.

Obito and Rin were flanking both sides of the piano, tense and apprehensive.

The instigator, a person I could clearly recognize as one of the new customers that came in earlier today, pudgy face flushed pink from the clear hangover. His unruly black hair stood out against the person holding him at sword point from behind.

Specifically, the person handing my captor's comeuppance was  _Dad._

_My Dad._

The two-toned brown hair and glint of red and green in his eyes just proved my suspicions.

I didn't even recognize the weapon he was holding against the guy's neck. From the split second I had, I could tell it wasn't fully visible. If anything, Dad's weapon was  _translucent_ , the only indicator that it was in his hand being the solid blue lines creating the outline of a long katana. My common sense screamed that this shouldn't be possible, considering that the weapon was  _see-through_ , with the exception of the flaring blue that was pure energy running through the image, but Dad's grip was firm and solid on the supposed handle.

I didn't want to believe it, but I knew it was real.

Dad. Was. Another incarnation of Velvet Scarlatina from RWBY. Not a full  _reincarnation_ , but he was definitely pulling off a good copycat version of her weapon's ability.

As in, he somehow had the same ability as her camera, at least, visually, of being able to  _materialize weapons from images._  But how? With chakra?

That was the only idea I had, but from what I could remember of canon, only  _samurai_ could do that sort of thing.  _Mifune's_ samurai. Not  _Dad_.

Maybe if I had looked closer, I would've seen the faintest outline of a real tanto sword in his fist underneath all the blue flares.

Unfortunately, I couldn't even think on it since Minato-san's hands were still covering my eyes, but my ears could still pick up the familiar voices.

"Hey, Minato, you take your team and Tomoko-chan back into the house. I need to take out this trash for ruining the day and harming my daughter. I'll send Hikari up to check on you in a bit."

Nearby, I could hear someone start to throw up. I didn't know if it was the culprit or a nearby innocent customer.

When did Dad start sounding so  _serious?_

Was this the ninja Judai I only heard about from Sakumo-san's stories?

The words of the former White Fang flashed through my head.

* * *

"Tomoko-chan, make sure you stay safe, okay?"

I could still remember the confusion. "…Um, okay? But why, Sakumo-san?"

At the time, he only smiled. "Let's just say you don't want to be there to find out why Judai was so feared as a ninja in his day, dear."

* * *

I didn't even register what happened in the next few minutes because my feet had yet to find residence on the  _ground_  until my eyes found themselves uncovered, looking around back in the family living room upstairs and landing on familiar silver orbs.

Worried, concerned, silver orbs.

_Kakashi._

My best friend was kneeling right in front of me. He was right here.

"Tomoko," he breathed my name almost shakily as he reached over to wipe a tear that I didn't realize fell from my cheek. "Are you okay?"

"K-Kakashi-kun…" The breath I didn't realize I was holding shakily left my mouth, and by then, the tears were already blurring my vision.

Even with the weight gone from my neck  _and_  heart, the  _fear_  was still there.

 _One._ Someone decided to start going on a drunken rampage when I was handling a song request.

 _Two._ That same someone insulted everything I as well as the entirety of Nagareboshi stood for, cursing it all in the most ugliest way possible.

 _Three_. That person tried to  _kill_  me. Whether it was from a drunken rage or not, the residual pain on my neck was still there.

 _Four_. Dad showed off exactly how powerful he was with that one move, even if I could only see it for a split second. Even as a retired ninja, he still had chakra to use, and from what little I saw of his eyes, that culprit was close to getting  _decapitated_.

 _Five._ I had almost  _died_. After dying once, I almost went away  _again_. Before accomplishing anything I meant to do. Before even saving Team Minato from Kannabi and the possibility of Kurama's rampage.

Before Naruto was even born, I had almost  _died._

And at the time, I couldn't do  _anything about it._

It was as if I was reduced to that college girl who was left helpless,  _choking_ in her own blood as her parents tried to save her to no avail.  _All over again._

To conclude, I basically went through what could be considered  _absolute hell_  in civilian standards, and left trembling in the house with the rest of Team Minato, being asked if I was "okay"?

No offense to my best friend, but I didn't feel in the  _least_  bit okay.

My only response was to throw myself at Kakashi in a tackle-hug, burying my face into the crook of his shoulder. I needed someone familiar. I needed a rock to ground me again. For once, I just wanted to get away from it all.

I didn't want to believe that…  _that_  just happened.

I didn't want to believe that I almost  _died again._

Dying  _once_  was already painful enough.

The memories did nothing to help.

_Mommy, Daddy, where are you? It hurts… Why is there so much blood? Help me, please…_

_PLEASE HELP ME!_

_I DON'T WANT TO DIE!_

The tears were already running down my face as the first sobs started leaving my lips. For once, Kakashi wasn't tense in the hug, immediately wrapping his arms around me and running his fingers through my hair. I could tell from his posture that he wanted to say something, but decided to hold it back for the sake of tightening the hug, squishing me to his chest as the wails continued to come out.

At one point, I could feel others joining in on the hug. From all the tears, I couldn't really tell who they were, but I could distinctly feel Minato-san, Obito, and Rin acting as collateral huggers by the shapes of their arms. Minato-san had this lean, bulky muscle fitting of the Yellow Flash while Rin and Obito were a bit more lanky, but they were still  _familiar._  Overall, we kinda became a huge mess of people, with me in the center bawling my heart out.

I really would have to apologize to Kakashi later for ruining his shirt and possibly sobbing out his eardrums.

I don't know how long it took, but after a while, the tears finally started to dry on my cheeks as the group hold on me loosened a little bit. It took another few minutes to finally steady my breathing, and by then, I could clearly make out the Leaf symbol on Kakashi's headband as he leaned close to rest his forehead against mine, silver eyes shining with concern.

"You okay?" he asked again.

For some reason, I just couldn't find my voice, only really able to give a weak nod.

Kakashi blinked for a moment before sighing, a sad one from the sounds of it, before reaching over to gently wipe at the drying tear trails on my cheeks. "What happened, Tomoko?"

Rin was the first to interject before I could answer, looking a bit panicky. "K-Kakashi-kun, that's not the best thing to ask right now!" To my surprise, she pushed — no, more like  _shoved_ — my best friend out of the way to face me and raise her hands gently to my neck. A soft blue glow surrounded them almost immediately.  _Diagnostic Jutsu?_  "What matters now is giving Tomoko-chan treatment!"

From over her shoulder, my best friend turned sheepish, surprise registering in his silver orbs. "S-Sorry about that."

From Rin's other shoulder, I could see Obito grin a bit. "She got you there, Bakashi."

"Not the time, Obito," Kakashi and Rin deadpanned in unison. Honestly, it was kinda freaky and Obito seemed to share the same sentiment because he immediately scooted back a centimeter or two, rubbing the back of his head uncomfortably. While this was going on, I could faintly hear the soft hum of chakra prodding the area where the instigator choked me, and strangely, it didn't hurt. I thought it would be bruised like all hell because of how I just couldn't breathe, but the way Rin was handling it — it was as though nothing had ever happened.

The pain was at least  _fading_ , because I could still faintly taste metal in the back of my throat.

"…How does it look, Rin?" Minato-san asked after a moment, tall figure dwarfing the four of us easily.

The medic continued to gently move her hands across my neck with the blue aura before sighing, looking up at the Yellow Flash with a mix of relief and sadness. "Luckily, it's just bruised with light internal bleeding, so it's nothing a quick Mystical Palm can't fix." At the comment, the blue aura suddenly turned green as I found my neck slowly feeling better with each place the medic touched. It was a slow process, considering my voice still sounded like I had just started smoking —  _which note, I'll never do_ _ **period**_  — but even then, I couldn't help but admire Rin that much more.

_Medical ninjutsu really is useful…!_

"But still," Rin began, turning her head back to focus on my neck again, frown on her face. "Had that man continued to hold onto Tomoko-chan for just a bit longer…"

She didn't need to finish that thought. Even in the fear-delirious state I was in, I knew what would've happened had they not stepped in sooner.

I didn't want to scare myself further. I didn't want to dig up old traumas.

For once, there was silence. No one really attempted to speak as Rin continued to heal my neck, adding to the tension in the living room.

It felt like we were waiting on something. But what?

_"TOMOKO-CHAN!"_

I only had one thought register in my head.  _Mom?_

Immediately, Rin scurried away once finishing the treatment for warm arms to wrap around me in a sudden hug. I was too frozen to even move.

"M-Mommy?" Immediately, the hug ended as Mom grabbed my face in her hands, squishing my cheeks together. From the close distance, I could make out her pale face and wide blue orbs. Heck, even her normally straight black hair seemed a bit frizzled in its side ponytail, some strands hanging loosely away from the main hairstyle.

_She shouldn't look like that. Mommy shouldn't look like that._

"Tomoko-chan…" I found myself in another hug as Mom squished me to her chest desperately, voice cracking. "Tomoko-chan… thank  _kami_ …"

She was scared.

I never realized Mom was just as scared as I was — possibly even more so. Normally, she would be the in-between for the kitchen help and waiting services, but seeing that? I wouldn't blame her for clutching me so hard.

 _No_  parent would want to see their child die before they do.

My past parents didn't. My current parents definitely didn't either.

A happy girl would've smiled and accepted it.

Not this time.

"M-Mommy…" The tears were starting to come back again, and this time, I knew I didn't want to start another sobbing session. Not when she was scared too. "W-Where's Daddy?"

"Right here, sweetheart."

_Dad._

I didn't even have to look up because as soon as he showed up over Mom's shoulder, he suddenly kneeled down to pull the two of us into a big group hug, radiating warmth that screamed a familiar message. "I'm sorry for being late."

 _It's going to be okay,_ his grip seemed to say.

Soon enough, I found myself in a bigger group hug again, with the rest of Team Minato actually joining in and hugging on all sides. For everything that happened today, for once, I could  _feel_  safe.

It at least confirmed that the initial stages of the scare were  _over_.

Unfortunately, the moment couldn't last forever since I could tell everyone had some questions.

Minato-san let out a shaky sigh once we all collected ourselves, sitting on the carpet with a hand on his knee. It was the first time I had seen him look so  _tired._  "…What did you do with that man, Judai?"

Dad looked up to frown himself, having already tucked me into his lap at this point, chin resting on top of my head. I leaned back into him just beacuse. "Gave him a firm talking to and then turned him into the Uchiha Police Forces. They should be able to deal with the bastard." I didn't miss how Dad's hands clenched in frustration. "Apparently one of the hired hands  _forgot_  about the alcohol rule we have here and gave the bastard too much."

"Judai, language around the kids." Mom then took the moment to sigh sadly, one of her hands in reaching distance for me to squeeze. "Do you want me to talk to them?"

To my surprise, Dad furiously shook his head, scowl on his face. "Already took care of it, Hikari. The guy's already packing to head out tomorrow. I made  _sure_  that they're never coming back." I couldn't help but notice how his voice went down an octave or two. It honestly sounded like he was  _growling_. Would this be how my past Dad would've sounded like after my death? "We're  _really_  going to have to up regulations if we don't want this to happen again."

"Um… Judai-san?" I was surprised to see Obito attempt to speak up, and didn't miss how Dad quickly turned his head to focus on the Uchiha with a narrowed glance. Despite the obvious hostility, Obito squeaked before coughing into his fist and continuing. "B-By chance, does this happen often?"

_I don't think that's the right question to ask, Obito._

Dad simply tightened the hold he had on me before sighing. "Never," he replied, tone short and clipped. "In all the years Hikari and I have been together running the business, this is the first time a customer has lashed out in such a way…"

Out of sympathy and what could really be childish emotion, I patted one of Dad's hands.

"…Could it be because of the war?"

Immediately, all heads turned towards the silver-haired Chunin who spoke, and by then, Kakashi donned a bit of an unsettled expression. "H-hey, just think about it. Even though Konoha still hasn't suffered that many losses, the fact that…that  _man_ ," I didn't miss the amount of contempt in my best friend's voice at the mention of the instigator. "Attacked in such a way means that things are getting serious. Even if we're living somewhat peaceful lives inside of Konoha's walls doesn't mean that the conflict is over outside. If anything, this may have been the tip of the iceberg."

"…But  _why_  did he pick Tomoko-chan?" Rin piped up, expression clearly showing her disbelief and hesitation. "She's just a civilian pianist — why would someone try to target  _her_?"

"Yeah!" Obito put his two cents in, strong emotion swirling in his black eyes. "She hasn't done anything wrong to make that guy act out in that way!"

A part of me didn't want to believe it, but my heart already knew what was going on. "I-I think…" Everyone turned to look at me with varying degrees of concern and recognition. "I think it might be because of what I was playing at the time. Team Minato may have come in just when the situation became bad, but before that, I was specifically requested by a customer to play the  _'most cheerful song I had.'_  It must've riled that man up when I didn't mean to…"

My anxiety-riddled heart piped up in my head to fill in the silence.

 _I didn't mean to make him angry, but my song choice was the last straw anyway. My possible death by suffocation was nothing but_ my own fault _._

"Tomoko-chan, you don't have to blame yourself for it!" I was surprised to see Minato-san jump up from his seat, fist clenched. "That man's actions wasn't something you should feel responsible for!" A few moments passed before the Jounin recognized the number of eyes pointed at him, and he simply coughed into his fist before sitting back down, calmly reaching over to touch my hand. "You were just doing your job, so you shouldn't take responsibility for actions beyond your control."

I could swear my heart stopped in my chest. At that moment, I didn't see just Minato Namikaze.

In those blue eyes and determined expression, I saw the Fourth Hokage. I saw Kushina's husband, hero of the Third Great Shinobi World War in another timeline, and most importantly.

I saw the origins of  _Naruto_. The beginnings of that heartfelt determination and hard work, and it was all exemplified in that one moment, focused on me. It felt as though the blonde knucklehead hero himself was staring at me, giving his own encouragement.

_Don't give up just yet, dattebayo!_

The tears were already beginning to bud in my eyes again as I looked down at my lap, absently playing with Dad's fingers. "O-Okay… but…but what are we supposed to do now?" I found myself croaking. "W-We can't just go out and open Nagareboshi tomorrow and pretend everything's okay."

_Not after that. Not after knowing that things will never be the same when Konoha's at war._

It was at this point that Kakashi sighed, scooting closer to put his hand against mine. "We can't, but I think we all can work together to make sure this doesn't happen again. First, we have to up security around the perimeters. Then, reinforce the work regulations already present at the cafe. Finally, maybe one of us can stick around and be a bodyguard if you need it, Tomoko." The silver haired Chunin blinked before turning around to look back at the rest of Team Minato. "How do you guys feel about that?"

Obito grinned. Rin smiled. "Of course it's fine!" they chirped in agreement. Minato-san just smiled in somewhat of a mysterious way, proud aura coming off of him.

"It's going to be a lot of work, kids." Dad deadpanned, frown visible enough to where I could feel the stubble on his chin twitch from the close distance. "And last I checked, you still have to deal with your own training and missions — you sure about this?"

It was Obito that spoke up with a large grin and a thumbs up. "Of course!" he summed up energetically.  _Oh, Obito_. "Tomoko-chan's helped all of us out — it's about time we went around and gave something back!"

_Oh, Obito…!_

"Agreed," Rin smiled softly, hints of a cheery pink on her face. "It's the least we can do, right Kakashi-kun?"

_Rin…_

My best friend was the last one to answer, but even then, I already knew what he was going to say. "Of course."

_Kakashi…_

The tears were already rolling down my face by the time Team Minato finished their little vows. Despite their…well, vocal worries.

"Oh, Tomoko-chan, don't cry! It's okay!" Rin-chan, fussing over me first.

"T-Tomoko-chan, we're here! No one's going to hurt you! It's going to be okay!" Obito, being an absolute dork while trying funny faces, just to make me laugh.

Kakashi only put a hand on my knee, giving an eye smile.

Luckily this time, the tears from me were of happiness.

I didn't deserve these people.

But I guess even in the darkest times, one's inner light shines the brightest.


	21. Finding a Way Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. Any concepts/ideas mentioned in this fanfiction that seem to be borrowed from another media/piece of continuity — note that I don't mean to plagiarize anything or anybody in any way! This fanfic was made for entertainment purposes, not for pissing off others! So yeah!
> 
> The theme for this chapter is Hypochondriac Piano's cover of Aqua's Theme from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep. Tomoko doesn't actually play the song, but it fits the mood quite nicely in my opinion. On the other hand, the outfit that Tomoko wears in this chapter is again from Darling Army, titled "Elegant Pony Cosplay Lolita Skirt." Just lengthen it to go past the knees, add in the white blouse pictured in the images on the webpage and blue sandals (the Naruto norm for shoes), and you're good!
> 
> Please enjoy!

_Chapter 19: Finding a Way Home_

"… _Vy, what did you do?"_

" _I-I don't know, Daddy! I-I just-"_

_I could hear myself sob. What?_

_"I didn't know! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"_

_It was all my fault._

* * *

"AHHHHH!"

I found myself jumping from my futon, breathing shaky. I didn't even feel the tears streaming down my cheeks until the snot started to gather in my nose, and by then, I could tell it wasn't going to be the best of days. The fact that… _that_  memory showed up in my dreams already was bad enough.

 _Why is it that after a traumatic day yesterday, my mind decides to make me see my_ worst  _failure as Vy?_

Surprisingly, it was still early morning. Even through the quickly drying tears, I could see the soft beams of the rising sun come through my window, and I knew that I needed to head outside. Luckily, it was a Saturday, so Nagareboshi was closed for the weekend, but I knew I didn't want to head down and play the piano.

Not after yesterday with that drunk man. Even though Dad was truthful in his report on turning the guy in to the Uchiha Police Forces, I still didn't feel safe.

_Who knows if something like that is going to happen again?_

_Even as a civilian, is it possible that I might get_ targeted  _again?_

_In this world, I could die just as easily as before, huh?_

My thoughts scared me. Even if they were just  _possibilities_ , the fact that it could happen  _terrified me_. Dying once was already painful before, but here? In a world where death by inhumane methods is  _common_?

I could still remember the image of Jiraiya, stabbed by multiple chakra rod receivers and being left to drown in the ocean.

_"There, that ending… was a little better. The frog at the bottom of the well drifts off into the great ocean. Heh heh… yep… pretty damn honourable… pretty damn honourable… I guess it's time to put down my pen. Right… I need a title for the next book… let's see… Ah, got it… The Tale of Naruto Uzumaki… perfect."_

_Jiraiya_! You can't go! Don't go! You have to keep teaching Naruto, goddammit!

Then there was Obito's first death by falling rocks and having half his body crushed.

" _Kakashi… protect Rin…"_

No,  _Obito_!

Don't get me started on the other member of Team Minato. I  _still_  couldn't get the memory of Rin, being impaled by Chidori  _through the heart_ out of my head _._

" _Kaka...shi…"_

Rin, why?!

Then there was Minato and Kushina, impaled by Kurama's large claw through  _the stomach_  and left bleeding out on the grass.

_"Naruto…you're going to experience a lot of pain and suffering. Remember who you are! Find a goal…a dream…and don't stop trying until it comes true. There's…there's so much more that I want to say…to teach you…I want to stay with you…I love you."_

Kushina-nee...

An older Kakashi,  _left to die in the rubble_  of the Leaf Village from chakra exhaustion, no one else able to reach him.

" _I guess…this is it for me. Obito…Rin…I'll see you guys soon."_

_Kakashi…_

No…

 _No_ …

_**NO!** _

The fear just kept rolling through my mind, even when I tried to sleep, filling my heart and cracking it significantly to the point where I knew I had to get out. Not just out of the house, but out of Nagareboshi.

I needed some time to myself if I really wanted to get myself together.

Without even thinking, I furiously pushed back my futon blanket, getting up to grab my hairbrush and handle the mess that was my hair. Even if it wasn't a work day, I knew I wanted to head out — and in an outfit that didn't scream, "Nagareboshi's Cover Pianist." While teasing out any light tangles in my hair, I quickly looked through my wardrobe. Surprisingly, my eyes landed a light violet skirt I had never seen before, looking almost shimmery and glossy from my point of view. Adding in the three small blue diamonds adorning the right side of the skirt, I knew it was something I wanted to put on, quickly grabbing it off its hanger with a matching short-sleeved white blouse.

It only took a few minutes to get fully dressed, slipping the skirt over my waist before grabbing the usual white hair ribbon to adorn the right side of my face. Afterwards, it was really sneaking out of my room to head into the living room, and even then, it was still quiet. All I could hear was the soft chirping of birds from outside the kitchen window and Dad's snores.

Yep, it was more than enough to tell me that I could head out on my own. Before slipping on some blue sandals, though, I made sure to grab a pencil and a stray piece of paper to write a note to leave on the living room table.

It wouldn't weigh well on my mind knowing I went out to clear my head and inadvertently worried my family  _and_  the Hatakes.

* * *

_Mom, Dad, Sakumo-san, Kakashi-kun,_

_Sorry if you don't see me in my room. I just needed some fresh air, so I went out for a walk around Konoha. I'll be back around 9._

_Love,_

_Tomoko_

* * *

After dropping the note off at its intended destination, I found myself quickly walking out the door to head down the stairs and reach Nagareboshi. Even though it was early morning, the interior of the cafe was dark with the exception of a few sunbeams shining through, one in particular landing on…

My eyes immediately averted what I knew was on the stage. After what happened the day before, I didn't have the courage to look at it.

That piano had seen a lot already, and I didn't have enough will to face it. The thin layer of dust on the black cover just reminded me how much went  _wrong_  yesterday.

" _See, you fuckers?! This_ wench  _could easily die with just a hand! Do you really want to relax knowing someone like me could take her away?! Start working_ harder _, you bitches, or I'll kill her right now!"_

A jolt of pain went through my neck at the thought. I forced myself to keep walking and open the front doors to step out onto the patio. Much like the interior of Nagareboshi itself, the streets of Konoha were silent, the only noises really being the soft spring winds and the chirping of birds. The day before yesterday, such silence would be comforting and immediately take the weight off my chest, but today was different.

If anything, the weight on my heart just seemed to grow larger at all the quiet.

The realization was quick.

_It's as though nothing has changed._

But I knew better. The earlier jolt in my neck was proof of that.

 _And_  Kakashi's soaked shirt, which he immediately threw in the wash last night. I never did fully get to apologize, since he seemed to stop me every time I tried.

…But even with that somewhat happy thought, my heart didn't seem to get any lighter. Apparently my emotions decided to go in the really "depressed" route now…  _ugh_.

Because of that, I decided to walk. I didn't really think of a certain direction — if anything, I chose a path and walked, taking in the surroundings and the cool, spring air.

Initially, it was all familiar buildings, with shop signs dimmed throughout the shopping center. Then, I couldn't help but notice how things were slowly changing as time went by. Instead of shops, I saw houses, apartments, and various other buildings I never really took the time to look at.

...Then again, I only really frequented Konoha's library, the occasional training ground with Team Minato, or Nagareboshi.

I really needed to get out more often if it meant really looking at my new home for what it was.

Each building was unique, with their own color scheme and house design reflecting the brightness that was Konoha. Some had stairs and verandas, while others looked like they came out of a math textbook (to me anyway) with various domes and cones to serve as differently colored roofs.

If I didn't know any better, Konoha would've looked like any normal urban city in America.

With the Hokage Monument acting as the ninja Mount Rushmore!

...I think. Please don't question me on this, past me didn't really travel outside the United States except one time, and she was three then.

Still. No matter where I walked, the three faces of Hashirama, Tobirama, and Sarutobi all looked down on the village with expressions of calm.

It was these faces that showed that Konoha should've been in good hands.

But the part of me that was Vy already knew better. With her memories, I already knew that Konoha had a lot of hurt coming in the future if nothing was to be done. I had to mentally push out the images of the destruction in my head to concentrate on just walking.

_Kurama, rampaging the village and leaving it Hokage-less until the Third steps back in._

_Orochimaru, taking the entire Sand village to attempt the Konoha Crush and kill the Third._

_Sasuke defecting and leaving_ way  _too many emotional wounds._

_Pain invading Konoha with his Six Paths and completely flattening the village in seconds._

_Kakashi, dying in the rubble—_

The image of my future best friend shot through my mind's eye, and I had to stop my walking pace to shake my head vigorously.

NO —  _not here._

Closing my eyes, I forced myself to breathe deeply.

 _Walking outside is supposed to help_ deal  _with these thoughts, not add more!_

This pace of thought and breathing took about a few minutes, and by the time I opened my eyes, I was greeted with quite the alarming sight.

Much to my growing dread, none of the buildings surrounding me were recognizable. If anything, the only thing in common with the shopping district that I called home was the towering Hokage Monument. Aside from that, it felt like I wandered into something akin to a forbidden/red-light district, with the few people walking around giving me rather suspicious stares. If anything, the surrounding buildings only ADDED to my worries since with the sun's angle, they cast really large shadows enough to make the street look like an  _alley_.

I forced myself to stay calm for a moment.

 _Hey, try retracing your steps!_  My common sense screamed, and in response, I looked behind me.

…Oh great. Even my footsteps apparently faded away into the gravel already. And the pathway behind me just looked  _far_  too shadowy for my liking.

… _Where am I supposed to go now? I'm officially lost…_

Looking up in the sky just added more to my worries, since the sun's position said more than enough. It was  _way_  past the time I said I would be home anyway.

I felt a strong urge to cry — something that had been coming down easily for the past few days.

_What am I supposed to do?_

My breathing was already becoming shaky and the stares from the passerby were already starting to become painful.

_Everybody's probably worried by now…_

My arms quickly wound around to hug myself, heart beating faster and faster with each second.

_What can I do? Where's Mommy and Daddy when you need them? Heck, I'll take a ninja if I can get home!_

The tears were already starting to come out when I heard him.

A large hand landed on my shoulder, patting it rather joyfully. "Hey, ojou-chan, what are you doing here?"

I couldn't help it. I kinda shrieked, high-pitched voice echoing everywhere before jumping forward to hug myself in an attempt to make my body appear smaller. Apparently the new guest in my personal bubble recognized my shock and immediately pulled back, sounding sheepish. "S-Sorry, ojou-chan! I didn't mean to scare you!"

What came out of my mouth in response sounded something like, "Uuu," or some other whimper.

_I'm tired of all the surprises already! I shouldn't have left home after all!_

I put my hands over my head, cowering a bit.

Surprisingly, the same voice spoke up again, this time a bit farther and gentler in tone. "Hey, ojou-chan, i-it's okay. I don't mean any harm to you."

 _...Do you really mean that?_ The thought went through my head, and out of pure curiosity, I turned around to open my eyes.

What greeted me was a man about a head taller than Dad's height. If anything, I think I might've made up to the middle of his waist in height comparison. He didn't look like a Konoha ninja — in fact, he could've passed off for a Western cowboy if not for the time period we were living in with his tanned skin. An orange scarf was tied around his neck with a small image of what appeared to be a crocodile stitched into the fabric. The man also had spiky black hair sticking out on both sides of his head, the top flat as though there to house a cowboy fedora. A black eyepatch covered his right eye; the other was a dark blue color, shining with kindness while looking down at me. Completing the look was a beige button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, complimented by a loosely hanging brown vest and black cargo pants, patches showing up every now and then on the fabric. The brown boots going all the up to the middle of his calf just screamed more of that "cowboy" vibe while adding that final touch to his appearance.

Though the man noticed he had my attention pretty quickly, since he smiled brightly, showing off warm whites that reminded me of Dad. "There you go, ojou-chan!" Continuing to smile, he walked over to kneel down to my height, looking at me eye-to-eye. Even with the small amount of tears blurring my vision, I could tell through his gaze alone that he was being genuine. "Sorry about scaring you there — you just looked sad looking around all by yourself."

"Y-Yeah…"

 _I wanna trust you,_ my gut added. Outwardly, I said, "I couldn't really sleep well last night and wanted to walk around Konoha, only to get lost…" Gosh, even when talking about it made me feel more embarrassed. Walking around alone like that early in the morning would equal kidnapping in ninja terms!

Don't remind me. I know Kakashi  _and_  my parents wouldn't be happy with this — especially since I was talking to a  _stranger_!

Despite my inner doubts, the man blinked in surprise before smiling softly, offering his hand to me. I couldn't help but notice how many grazes and callouses were on his palm. "I see. How about I help you find your way home, ojou-chan? I'm Jim Crocodile Cook."

_Jim…? Where have I heard that name before?_

For some reason, relief flooded my systems and I found myself carefully reaching over to put my smaller hand in his, shaking it. "I-I'm Hoshino Tomoko, Jim-san. P-Please do then."

"Tomoko-chan then, right? Nice to meet you." To my surprise, Jim-san didn't let go of my hand after the handshake, instead opting to stand up and walk in another direction, causing me to run along to match his long strides. "By chance, where is your house?"

"U-Um… in the main shopping district. I live in Nagareboshi Cafe." The man stopped for a moment, almost making me crash into him. His grip loosened on my hand a bit as he turned a surprised cerulean eye on me.

"By chance, ojou-chan, do you know the owners, Hikari and Judai, then?"

I blinked up at him, trying not to be really confused. "Y-yeah, they're my mom and dad! Do you know them, Jim-san?"

The adult tilted his head at me before grinning again and tightening the grip on my hand, looking up towards the sky.

"I see…so you're Judai's little girl…" I didn't miss the nostalgia passing through his face before he looked down at me again, audibly humming while starting up his walking pace again. "And yeah, I do, Tomoko-chan! Your dad's an old teammate of mine."

Now I felt more confused. "…Old teammate?" I repeated.

_Does that mean Jim-san knew Dad back when he was still a ninja?_

Unfortunately, I didn't really get more time to think on it because soon enough, the familiar buildings of the shopping district came into view. In the distance, I could see the figures of Mom and another red-haired beauty before my ears caught the increasingly  _loud_  noise coming towards us.

_"TOMOKO-CHAN?!"_

Of course, the incoming tackle hug was somewhat expected, but coming from both Mom  _and_ Kushina-nee?

It was a double serving of love and pain.

Even while being smothered, I could vaguely make out Jim-san's surprised laughter and various comments.

"Where were you, you silly girl?!" Mom scolded, right cheek rubbing mine. Aaaaaah. "You had us worried when you didn't come home by the time you told us!"

"We even called up Team Minato and Jiraiya-sama to find you, Tomoko-chan!" Kushina-nee added hotly, red hair flaring like flames in the air while hugging me. "You really gave us a heart attack, dattebane!"

…Well, judging at how Jiraiya-san and Minato-san themselves were standing in the background exasperatedly shaking their heads in unison, I could believe it.

Not to mention how Obito and Rin were giggling with one another in a corner. Sakumo-san was the only odd one out of the picture, smiling gently at everything from Nagareboshi's patio.

Jim-san was still laughing. "L-Ladies, I believe Tomoko-chan can't breathe there with you two smothering her so much~"

_Aaaaaaah~!_

I was seeing shooting stars again!

In response, Kushina-nee let go almost immediately to leave me in Mom's arms (which were luckily relaxed by that point), instead opting for pinching my cheeks. Hard.

"Eep!" I found myself squeaking, cheeks already starting to feel sore. Who knew Kushina-san could pull so  _hard?_  "I-I'm sorry, Kushina-nee! I'm sorry, Mommy!"

"You better be, Tomoko-chan." Mom lightly swatted the redhead's hands away to gently put me back down onto the ground, bumping her forehead with mine. Blue eyes shined with unshed tears and determination while looking down at me. "Don't wander off by yourself like that too much, okay?"

 _I don't want to lose you._ Was what my mind filled in.

Pure embarrassment and happiness filled me as a sheepish smile came over my face.  _Looks like my quest to handle my own emotions ended up worrying her and everybody else no matter what I did. Go me._

I ended up reaching over to pull Mom into the hug she deserved, whispering into her ear. "I know Mommy, and I'm sorry. I'll try not to do that again."

"Not try, dear," She interjected, hand reaching over to stroke my hair. "Just do, okay?"

"…No promises, Mommy," I found myself deadpanning. "Bad things just happen sometimes and I'll occasionally have to walk out for a bit."

"…Tomoko-chan," Mom gave me a half-lidded stare and I couldn't help but sweat.

_...I think I said the wrong thing. And I can't…really run here…_

I closed my eyes, expecting the worst. To my surprise, a long sigh left her lips before she pulled me into another hug. "When did you start sounding like your dad, dear? I miss the little girl who would follow me around a few years back."

I blinked before hugging back. "Um…when I started to serve ninja?"

Another sigh. "Tomoko-chan, that was a rhetorical question."

"Oh…"  _Oops, spoke too soon again._ "I-I'm sorry, Mommy."

By then, Mom was giving me an exasperated shake of her head before letting go and pushing me in another direction. "Quit apologizing so much, sweetie — you still need to talk to some other folks that have been waiting for you."

I could only intelligently say, "Huh?" before getting tackled — again.

This time, by a former ninja dad.

 _"Tomoko-chan!"_  Dad screeched rather happily, rubbing his stubble against my cheek. I held back the huge urge to cringe at the scratchy feeling, simply reaching over to wrap my arms around his torso. Dad's stubble may have felt as uncomfortable as ever, but I didn't mind for once.

After the huge shock that was last night, he had  _every_  right to snuggle me.

"Hi, Daddy," I found myself murmuring, reaching up to pat his back. "I'm sorry for coming home so late and worrying you."

With all the shit that had been going down lately, that was the least I could say.

Dad immediately pulled away to put his large hands on my shoulders, glaring at me. Judging by the glints of red and green in his eyes, I knew I was in trouble. "You better be, you little—"

I closed my eyes tightly, expecting a slap or something similar for my mistake. Instead, what greeted me was a noogie.

"AAAAH!" I found myself screeching, doing my best to pull away from the mess Dad was making of my hair. "D-Daddy!" Despite the uncomfortable feeling, I found myself laughing.

"You find that funny, huh, Tomoko-chan?!" If I didn't know any better, I swore Dad had this huge, mischievous grin on his face. "How about  _this_?!"

And then he started  _tickling me._ By the end of it, I was rolling around in Dad's arms, literally laughing my butt off while attempting to avoid those wiggly fingers, even hitting the pavement. "D-Daddy~! H-Hey~ that —  _hee_  — t-tickles! S-S-Stop~!"

"Can't~!" Dad hummed happily, still wiggling his fingers at my sides. "Little girls like you need punishment~!"

"NO~!" I found myself screaming dramatically.

…When was the last time I had laughed like this?

It felt like  _home_  again.

_"How are you feeling, Vy? Better?"_

If only you knew, Josh.

For once, it felt like everything was going to be  _okay_  again.

Soon enough, Dad let go to only pull me into the crook of his arms to lift into the air. From the close distance, I could clearly see the clear  _adoration_  in his brown orbs, and honestly, I couldn't be more happy about it. "Just don't go out like that again, okay, Tomoko-chan? We were all worried about you."

"…I know, Daddy, and I'm sorry." I just reached over to wrap my arms around his neck, burying my face into the crook of his shoulder. Even as a 9 year old, I still felt like a baby in Dad's arms, and it felt nice being pampered a bit.

But I knew better. There were still a few other people I needed to talk to.

"So… who's the prince charming that brought you home, dear?" At Dad's sudden question, I blinked and pulled away from the hug to point in Jim-san's direction.

"Jim-san over there!" I chirped, trying my best to sound polite despite the childish tone. "He found me when I got lost and said he knew you, Daddy!"

It was at this point that Jim-san stepped up, smiling in all his "cowboyish" glory. "Well, she's not wrong about that, right, Judai?"

Dad blinked before gently bringing me back down to ground level, never once letting go of my hand. The two men looked at one another, and it was that moment that I think I saw something different pass through Dad's eyes.

Was it sadness? Or nostalgia?

_What really happened in your ninja life, Daddy?_

A moment of silence passed before Dad broke it with a calm smile. "Well, it's been a while, Jim."

"It has," the taller man replied, reaching up to scratch the back of his head. "The last time we saw each other was during that time with Hokage-sama and Hikari, huh?"

"Yeah…" Dad trailed off for a moment, looking to the side before lifting his head to show off a brighter grin. "It's good to see you doing so well again, old friend."

"Good to see you too, man," Jim-san answered gently, cerulean eye soft with something I couldn't recognize. "So… You have a family now, huh?" I didn't miss how the taller man peered over to look at me, a flash of recognition going through the lone dark blue orb. "Never would have thought you'd finally settle down."

"Eh," Dad shrugged, looking as nonchalant as ever. Even so, I couldn't help but notice how his grip on my hand tightened a bit. "Finding a good partner does that to you. So I heard you took up the crafting business?"

"Yep." Jim-san beamed, looking much brighter than before. "After all that's went down, turns out working with a carving knife and furnace is a lot better than a bloodied kunai. The other ninja seem to appreciate it — heck, I was surprised to see the former White Fang come in a while back mentioning you!" The cowboy laughed, tone soft. "I was actually looking around to find some more materials this morning when I stumbled on your little ojou-chan."

Dad simply breathed out through his nose in a quick huff before his smile turned a bit sheepish. "Tomoko-chan wasn't too much trouble, was she?"

To my surprise, Jim-san began to laugh, arms winding across his stomach. "Of course not, Judai! If anything, she's a keeper alright. I can understand why you retired in the first place when looking at her." I couldn't help the hot blush staining my cheeks at this point, and found myself quickly hiding in the back of Dad's shirt. Luckily, he didn't seem to mind.

"Glad to see you understand too, Jim," Dad seemed to finally relax at that comment, loosening the hold he had on my hand significantly while grinning. "Thanks for bringing her back home. It's been a bit rough lately."

 _Yeah, no kidding._ I found myself commenting in my head.

The taller man blinked before sighing sympathetically. "Yeah, I heard. Sorry about what happened yesterday at the cafe. Just know that if you need any help, I'm always there, okay?"

Dad blinked, clear surprise in his brown orbs before a small smile came over his face, replacing the big grin he once had. "Yeah, thanks Jim. I'll come to you if the situation ever needs you."

To my surprise, the craftsman then turned his eye to me, bending down to one knee to look at me in the eye. "And that applies to you too, Tomoko-chan, okay?"

"…Huh?" I found myself mumbling, still somewhat hiding in Dad's clothes.

Jim-san grinned again before reaching into his left pant pocket, scourging around before the familiar light bulb of recognition showed on his face. To my surprise, he pulled out what appeared to be a small wooden figurine in the shape of a crocodile, reaching over to place it in my smaller hand. Just from looking at it, I could tell the craftsman put a  _lot_  of work into the figure because I could clearly make out the crocodile's eyes, various scales, and even a small scarf similar to Jim-san's tied around the animal's neck — all individually sculpted and painted on such a small piece of wood. "This little girl is Karen," The craftsman folded my fingers around the figure, looking at me with a warm gaze. "She's the mascot of my shop and what I would like to call my best friend. If you ever get lost or need help again, just hold onto her and you'll find me, okay, Tomoko-chan?"

I felt both honored and weirded out by the gift, but nevertheless closed my hands over the figure to hold close to my heart.  _Might as well look at this as a good luck charm._ "Thank you, Jim-san."

The craftsman simply beamed again before reaching over to place a warm hand on my head, ruffling my hair a bit. "You're welcome ojou-chan." With a swish of his vest, Jim-san got to his feet, dusting off his pants before grinning at Dad. "You take care of her, Judai, alright?"

Dad scoffed. "No need to be Captain Obvious there, Jim! I know."

In response, the "cowboy" blinked before letting out one last laugh, turning his back on us and giving a peace sign in our direction before walking off. "See you, old friend!"

"See you again soon, man!" Dad waved frantically in Jim-san's direction, and I couldn't help but look up at him.

"…So you really knew Jim-san, Daddy?" In response, Dad blinked before kneeling down to look at me, brown eyes warm.

"I did, Tomoko-chan, ever since we were teenagers." Before I could say anything more though, Dad grabbed my shoulders to turn me around in the direction of Nagareboshi, jerking his head upwards. "But I don't think that's what you should be focusing on right now."

"Eh?" I said rather carelessly. Dad scoffed again before motioning upwards with a nod of his head, and I followed the direction of his eyes only to get a glimpse of silver hair on the roof.

 _Oh._ My mind commented slowly, connecting the dots.

"He was worried too, sweetie." Dad said softly behind me, hands still on my shoulders. "Go up there and talk to him, okay?"

Dad didn't have to say anymore. I was already running into the cafe to head upstairs and find the nearest staircase leading up to the roof.

I had a best friend to talk to.

* * *

Kakashi wasn't surprised to see Tomoko attempting to climb onto the roof where he was at. With all the panic that happened in the morning, he was too tired to really care anymore.

Why did she have to leave on her own anyway? Especially after all that happened the day before?

Even she should have realized going by herself, even in the village, was dangerous.

Kakashi didn't want to see that scene ever again.

It should've been a relaxing afternoon that day. After such a disastrous D-Rank mission with Obito fooling around as usual and Rin staring at him in a way that just made him uncomfortable, Kakashi was looking forward to Tomoko's usual piano.

Not to walk in seeing someone trying to  _kill_  her.

 _"See, you fuckers?! This_ wench  _could easily die with just a hand! Do you really want to relax knowing someone like me could take her away?! Start working_ harder _, you bitches, or I'll kill her right now!"_

Kakashi didn't even think. All that was on his mind was  _protecting his best friend._ The kunai instinctively found its way into his hand, and the way the man  _screeched_  in pain at the slash he landed on his wrist was satisfying. The blood spurting out was just the frosting on the cake.

He just wasn't expecting  _Judai-san_  of all people to take charge, and with a  _translucent sword_  to boot.

Kakashi was too in shock at the sight of the older man holding Tomoko's captor at swordpoint with such a strange weapon to even mentally protest at his thunder being stolen.

Even when working on missions with other older ninja than Minato-sensei, there wasn't a single person that moved in the way Judai-san did. Sakumo did mention that the cellist  _was_  a former ninja, but  _this?_

It just made Kakashi that much more curious as to why Judai-san retired as a ninja in the first place.

He didn't really have time to think on it though since Tomoko needed help. Kakashi didn't even need to look behind him at the time, since he could  _hear_  how scared she was. Her normally high-pitched voice sounded coarse and almost  _sickly_ , and his ears could've bled knowing that she was close to crying in Minato-sensei's arms.

Tomoko shouldn't have been crying. She should've been smiling as always, greeting him and the rest of the ninja with her gentle music.

She wasn't supposed to be clutching onto him for dear life, sobbing her heart out the way she did. Kakashi was grateful for his team for the first time in days, since their added presence seemed to make the situation just a bit lighter. And in the end, he found himself hugging his friend back just as tight.

She shouldn't have experienced that. Tomoko was a  _civilian_  — she shouldn't have gotten so close to the edge of death like that. Fellow shinobi he could understand, but  _Tomoko_? Even at his age, Kakashi knew that the ninja world wasn't something the civilian pianist would fit well in — and she had far too close a brush with the dark sides of it.

His sanctuary was almost taken away — and all under his nose.

But the silver-haired Hatake would always remember it. Those cries were still stuck in his head, and hearing that she went out on her own the next morning, leaving only a  _note_ , just made the memory  _worse._

Initially, he tried searching with his team. Kakashi went to every place he thought of, including her room, the familiar interior of Nagareboshi, and even the ninja library. But nothing seemed to be turning up. His sense of smell apparently wasn't helping either, since with each passing hour, the number of passerby just muddled the familiar rosemary he was used to.

His conflicted feelings from the night before didn't really help, and in the end, Kakashi left it up to Jiraiya-sama and Minato-sensei to help his teammates. Even though he knew it was okay to feel the way he did when trying to find a friend, it wouldn't serve as a good image for himself knowing that he could've cried.

A ninja was not supposed to cry until after the mission was over. Once he was off the field. She was the one who told him that.

" _It's true that in the field, Rule #25 says that 'shinobi must never show their tears,' but you're not in the field right now. You're here with me in Nagareboshi, and it's okay to not be a shinobi here. It's okay to be human — no one's going to judge you._  I  _will never judge you."_

He was supposed to be the strong one in Team Minato — not cry like the dead-last Obito.

So then why was it so hard to face  _her_  when she came up to the roof? Looking at Tomoko's blue eyes just seemed to equal "huge weight on his chest," and Kakashi was honestly  _not_  in the mood to deal with that kind of emotional shit.

"Kakashi-kun…?" And why did her call of his name just make his innards  _hurt_ so much more?

Kakashi forced himself to look away, doing his best to ignore the soft blue orbs looking at him.

Despite this, his ninja senses could pick up the girl's movements, noting how her steps seemed so much more  _hesitant_ , too light to pick up at first glance. His ears could pick up the gentle shifting of her skirt as she slowly sat down next to him.

Then, there was silence. It was possibly one of the "contemplative silences" that Tomoko named after his Chunin Exams, but Kakashi didn't know what to make of it.

Just smelling that familiar rosemary just made his heart weigh so much more in his chest and for all of his planned words to just leave his mind.

What was he supposed to say?

"... I'm sorry, Kakashi-kun." He found himself jolting at the sudden touch on his right fist. It was both familiar and different, even though it was still Tomoko. But why did she sound so sad? Did she know something that she wasn't supposed to know? It was these thoughts in mind that Kakashi found himself shakily turning his head only to get a glimpse of black hair shading his friend's face. "I know I messed up, and I can't really tell you what's fully going on in my head right now."

"…Why not?" he found himself choking out.

_When you've always heard me out? Am I really such a bad friend to not know what's going on with you?_

Tomoko blinked before smiling sadly, sighing. "I'm not really sure myself. But I mainly walked out this morning just to get a grip on my thoughts. There's been a lot going on lately, and at the time, I didn't want to worry you."

Kakashi found himself frowning through his mask at the civilian girl. "Well, we both know how well  _that_  went." The ninja was surprised at the amount of  _venom_ going through his words, and found himself regretting it immediately. The  _heartbroken_  expression his friend had just made his heart feel worse. He was expecting anything — a slap, a yell, anything.

Not what Tomoko said afterwards. She just slumped into herself with another sigh. "I know — Mom, Dad, and Kushina-nee already called me out on that." Despite her solemn tone, she didn't let go of his tense hand, lightly stroking the back of his palm. "I can at least say this though."

"…What?"

"I will be able to tell you eventually, Kakashi-kun." She smiled, and for once, the weight on his heart seemed just a little lighter. "It's not now, but you'll know eventually. You're my best friend — I'll let you know when I need you, okay? Don't take it as an insult to yourself." Tomoko sighed again, and Kakashi couldn't help but notice the soft indication of  _bags_ under her blue eyes. "It's just  _me_  — and I need to figure this whole thing out before I can say anything. You understand, right?"

Kakashi did. It was frustrating and honestly, irritating to know that the girl was keeping a secret, but the solemn glint in her eye said more than enough. For the first time that day, he turned to look at her fully, taking in the familiar appearance of his best friend before nodding slowly. "…Alright."

_I just hope it's sooner rather than later._


	22. Trying to Move On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. Any concepts/ideas mentioned in this fanfiction that seem to be borrowed from another media/piece of continuity — note that I don't mean to plagiarize anything or anybody in any way! This fanfic was made for entertainment purposes, not for pissing off others! So yeah!
> 
> The theme for this chapter is Scamper's piano cover of Born a Stranger from To The Moon. To The Moon was one of the more recent video games I played lately, and this song in particular really resonated with me and how this story is progressing. Note that Tomoko doesn't play this song in the chapter, but it handles the mood really well.
> 
> Please enjoy!

_Chapter 20: Trying to Move On_

_Huh…? Where am I?_

" _It's fine, Kakashi… I-I don't think I can make it…"_

_What?_

" _OBITO!"_

_Kakashi-kun? Why are you… Oh no._

" _Kakashi! Then you should know about my feelings too—"_

_Rin-chan!_

" _Rin—! I was once trash that tried to abandon you…"_

_Not this. Not Kannabi._

" _I'm sorry I didn't make it in time, Kakashi. Rin told me everything."_

_Why, Minato-san? Why were you so late?_

" _Kakashi! Kill me!"_

 _Don't say that, Rin-chan! Please,_ please _, fight it!_

" _I'll make a world where you're alive again…"_

_Obito-kun! You're being fooled! Don't say that!_

" _What's the point of playing all that happy-go-lucky_ bullshit?!"

_Not that memory too!_

" _Vy! Oh my god — hang in there! Please!"_

_Mommy..._

_No…_

_No…_

NO!

* * *

I couldn't help it. I found myself jolting from my futon with a loud gasp, and the tears were already starting to fall from my cheeks by the time I started to notice my surroundings.

For one thing, the moon was still shining through my window. Judging from the angle, it was still early for the sun to come up — which meant my nightmare made me wake up in the middle of the goddamn night… Sheesh.

Not to mention, seeing how my heart was just not slowing down and the irregularity of my breathing, I immediately knew that I had to do something. Sleep just wouldn't come as easily as I would like, and for once, my childish instincts were in agreement with me.

Doing my best to wipe the tears away, I shakily got up from my futon, sniffling the whole way while tip-toeing out of my room and gently opening the door to Mom and Dad's room.

I wasn't surprised to see the two of them asleep in their shared futons in the center of the room. Even with the darkness of night shrouding the area, the small slivers of moonlight let me see which lump was Mom and Dad, and their peaceful sleeping faces made me hesitate.

… _Is it really okay to wake them up like this?_

A soft yawn interrupted my thoughts before I could contemplate the idea further. "…Tomoko-chan?" The large bump that was Mom shifted a bit before I could clearly see her head poking from the blanket, black hair tangled and messy across her face. Her blue eyes were somewhat dulled with sleep as they blinked up at me in confusion before widening. "Sweetie? What's the matter?"

The question just seemed to incite the tears in my eyes to come out even more. "M-Mommy…"

" _Murgh_ … Hikari?" Dad was the next to stir, brown hair sticking up from his head as he lifted himself up to lean on one elbow, rubbing his eye with his other hand. "What's the matter?" It only took a second for him to become alert though, turning in my direction while sitting up fully in his part of the futon, brown eyes wide. "Tomoko-chan?"

"D-D-Daddy…" The sobs were already leaving my lips as I attempted to cover my face with my hands. "I-It hurts…"

"Tomoko-chan…" The soft sounds of footsteps reached my ears before two sets of arms enclosed around me, bringing me into a warm group hug. The touch alone instantly alerted me that it was my parents."What hurts?"

"E-Everything…" The words were almost stuck in my throat, creating a lump that was hard to bypass. "I-I couldn't sleep… because the images just keep coming…"

"What images, dear?" Mom spoke softly, a hand gently stroking my hair.

"I-I…" Another broken sob left my lips. "I-I keep seeing —  _hic_  — Kakashi-kun and his team… I keep seeing them  _dying!"_  The truth was finally out for once, and yet the wails kept shaking me to the core. Saying it was already hard enough as is - but to my  _parents?_

It felt a million times worse.

"W-What do you mean, sweetheart?" Dad was the first one to pry my hands away from my face, kneeling down enough to look at me in the eye. "What happened to Kakashi-kun?"

"N-Nothing, b-b-but-" I was sure I was blubbering now. "Ever since t-t-that customer tried to choke me, I-I keep getting these images in my head, Daddy! Every time I've tried to sleep, I-I-I just get these bad dreams of something bad happening! M-M-my neck  _hurts,"_  I did my best to motion to the large amount of throbbing in my neck with my shaky hands, even through the tears. "A-And I just keep getting them  _over and over!_  E-E-Even…"

The sobs leaving me prevented me from saying anything else. My mind filled the rest in.

_Even that man himself keeps haunting me. Even Vy's past death keeps visiting me._

In the end, I had enough energy to make out one last request.

"C-C-Could I s-s-sleep with you two, tonight?  _P-P-P-Please_?"

I never felt so  _helpless_  before.

And yet Mom and Dad didn't even hesitate in looking at one another before giving me an answer.

"Of course you can, Tomoko-chan." Mom was the first one to hug me again, letting me rest my cheek against her shoulder. "It's going to be okay."

Dad wrapped his arms around the both of us as a small smile bloomed on his face. "Yeah, Tomoko-chan. Let's get some rest and then I can take you to someone that can help in the morning, alright?"

For once that entire night, the weight on my heart lessened somewhat. Even though the tears just kept coming, the familiar warmth of my family gave me enough strength to nod shakily, sniffles leaving my lips.

I was really hoping it would be okay - because right now, I didn't feel okay. I didn't even have the strength to fully hug back, having to rely on both my parents to usher me into bed with them. My consciousness finally slipped away with the warmth of Mom and Dad on both of my sides, the tears slowly drying and crusting on my face.

One last thought resonated in my mind before sleep took me away again.

_Please… make things better._

* * *

It was the next morning that Dad took me to the Yamanaka Clan Compound. Immediately after a quiet breakfast, Mom was the one to give warm send-offs to Sakumo-san and Kakashi, providing their normal bento lunches. I did my best to ignore the worried glances sent my way, although my best friend wouldn't have any of that.

I guess the red circles around my eyes were obvious enough as is.

At the front door, Kakashi turned to me, bento in hand, frown on his masked face. "…Will you be okay?" He prodded.

I didn't have enough energy to even give him a proper reply, simply shrugging from the uncertainty. For once, I wished I was wearing a kimono dress, because the long sleeves would've been nice to cover my shaking mouth. Instead, Mom decided to give me a simple white summer dress despite the spring season, exposing my shoulders with the straps and a bit of my calves. With the blue sandals added in, I felt like Namine when Sora was somewhat interrogating her.

Kakashi just gave me a half-lidded stare before stashing his bento into a bag strapped to the back of his pants. "…Tomoko," For some reason, his stare on me was starting to hurt, and I had to look away to prevent more tears from escaping my eyes. The familiar silver was starting to overlap with a glowing red, and I had to mentally push the image out of my mind to concentrate. Imagining the after-effects of Kannabi was  _not_  going to help my current situation.

To my surprise, the ninja let out a soft sigh before reaching over to pull me into a hug.

I was too frozen to even move. "…K-Kakashi-kun?"

"I'm not going to ask if you don't want me to," He started, a hand reaching up to rest on top of my head. "Just let me know when you want to talk, okay?" My best friend pulled away to simply rest his forehead against mine, the cool metal of his headband touching my skin in a strangely soothing manner. "I'm here for you too, Tomoko — don't forget that."

The tears were already starting to blur my vision as I nodded shakily. "I-I won't… t-thank you… I-I-I love you, Kakashi-kun, okay?"

Kakashi simply blinked before smiling softly, continuing to rest his head against mine while closing his eyes. "I know, Tomoko. I love you too." When his eyes opened again, even through the tears, I could see the sincerity and emotion in the familiar silver. "I'll see you later this afternoon, okay?"

"O-Okay… Stay safe. I'll see you later."

My best friend scoffed in response, bumping his head against mine before letting go and turning his back on me. "No need to say the obvious. See you later." And with a wave of his hand, he opened the door and left, leaving me standing at the doorstep in a bit of emotional disbelief.

It was the large hand that landed on my shoulder that finally snapped me out of my funk. "Tomoko-chan," Dad started softly, the other hand reaching over to touch my own. "Ready to go?"

I didn't feel ready, but turned around to nod anyway. It would be better to get this over with sooner than later. "I-I'm ready, Papa." If Dad noticed my name change, it didn't visibly show on his face as he reached over to hold my hand, a soft smile on his face.

Soon enough, we were walking together out of the house and out of Nagareboshi. I didn't miss how Dad purposefully led me away from looking at the piano in the center of the cafe. After all that's happened, I still didn't have the courage to face it, even if it had been a couple of days after the incident.

Now that I think about it, I never did walk around Konoha with Dad before. A majority of the time, I stayed in Nagareboshi or walked to the Konoha library by myself or with Kakashi if he decided to tag along.

This was the first time I was walking around in the village, holding Dad's hand in plain sight.

Strangely, I didn't mind the curious and at times suspicious glances some of the villagers sent our way. I was with my Papa — and for once, I wanted to enjoy this time with him.

Last night was already bad enough as is — I would take any peaceful moment without hesitation.

Soon enough, the familiar shopping district around us started to disappear in favor of differently shaped houses lining the area. The number of passerby shifted with each passing moment, and if not for the emotional turmoil my heart was putting me through, I would've taken the time to look around. I only really stopped walking when Dad came to a stop, his hand tightening over mine.

Looking up from my sandals, I couldn't help but notice the happy yellow color scheme and the various potted plants sitting in front of the store. An orange roof complimented the bright walls of the building, and from the close distance, I could make out a large pink sign sitting on top of said roof over one of the windows, japanese characters drawn in a soft red hue.

… _Yamanaka Flowers?_

A soft tug on my hand. "Tomoko-chan, we're here." I looked up to see Dad staring down at me with concerned brown eyes, and I couldn't help the sheepish smile on my face. "Let's go in, okay?"

"Okay, Papa," Dad turned back to look up at the pink sign before sighing, reaching up to jiggle the doorknob and open the door.

The soft jingle of door chimes greeted us as we walked inside, and the first thing that hit me was  _flowers._ Lots and  _lots_  of flowers. No matter where I looked, the inside of the shop was filled with the pretty blossoms, ranging from simple roses sitting in a bucket to beautiful forget-me-nots hanging from the ceiling. Dad walked forward to face the single counter in the center of the shop, and from the back door, a woman with hazel eyes and long brown hair tied in a regal bun with a red ribbon greeted us. From her classy green dress, I didn't take for a Yamanaka at first. If not for the eye shape that reminded me of Ino, then the lady could've passed off for Mom's age.

… _Is this Ino's mother?_

"Hello there, how can I help you—" The lady was in the middle of bowing towards us before looking up, brown eyes widening. "Judai?" A soft smile grew on her face. "Oh my, it's been awhile since I last saw you!"

"Hello, Kanon," Dad said softly, his hand still gripping mine. "It's been a while."

The atmosphere became rather stale almost immediately as recognition showed in the lady's brown eyes, lips thinning into a small line. "I'm guessing by that serious face that you're not here for flowers, huh?"

"I wish," Dad sighed again before lightly jerking his shoulder to motion towards me. The Yamanaka turned towards me, and I found myself trying to hide behind Dad's familiar figure. Even though I knew she was safe, the gaze she was turning on me felt too perceptive - too foreign for my liking. "I actually was hoping if I could borrow your boyfriend for something. My little girl's been having nightmares lately and needs help sorting through them."

"Inoichi? I see…" Kanon-san blinked before looking down at me with sympathy. Apparently she saw something in me because her previously stern expression softened enough to where she walked out from behind the counter to kneel down to my height with a kind smile. "Hello there, sweetheart, what's your name?"

Her soft tone threw me into surprise, and I found myself blushing. "H-Hoshino T-Tomoko, ma'am."

To add to my shock, Kanon-san actually reached into her pocket to pull out a lotus hair pin, reaching over to gently pin it into my bangs, shifting them back. "Now now, dear, don't be shy. My Inoichi should be gentle with you — it's going to be okay." Apparently I was getting a lot of this lately. A soft hand patted my head before the woman straightened herself, looking up at Dad again. "I'll take you to him immediately."

"Thanks, Kanon," Dad huffed gently, and I couldn't help but notice how his shoulders visibly sagged, all tension leaving them. The woman in response softly chuckled, patting his back heartily.

"No need to worry about it Judai — consider it a favor from a friend for such an adorable little girl!" Now I could see how Ino got her energy — Kanon-san just exuded that cheerful aura that the future girl was known for — especially when befriending Sakura. "You did a good job in raising such a beautiful flower up until now~!"

I was actually shocked to see a soft red brush Dad's face as he reached up to scratch his cheek sheepishly. "Kanon, that's great and all, but we need to focus. Please go and get Inoichi."

The woman huffed, visibly pouting before sighing again. "Oh, fooey. Alright." With a swish of her green dress, she turned back to look at us for a moment before heading into the back. "Just follow me, okay?"

* * *

The next thing I knew, I was sitting in a chair in what appeared to be an examination room, a younger version of Ino's Dad flitting around me. Even though Dad was nearby holding my hand, the blue eyes staring at me just made me feel uncomfortable.

The knowledge that this man would become the Yamanaka Clan Head and the head of the Investigation part of the T&I division of Canon didn't help one bit.

"So how long have these nightmares been happening, Tomoko-chan?" The soft, gentle voice of the older man in front of me did calm my nerves a bit, but not enough to loosen my shoulders.

"U-Um… Ever since a few days ago…" Sheesh, even talking about it made me feel uncomfortable. "…After that bad customer, i-i-it's gotten worse…" I bit my lip to hold back the urge to cry.  _Dad, I know this helps, but why did it have to be_ Ino's father?  _I thought he was out on the front lines!_

"So what do you think of it, Inoichi?" Dad interjected gently, squeezing my hand reassuringly. "Visions or after-effects of trauma?"  _And why do you have to refer to it like I'm not here?_

"It could be either, Judai-senpai," The man sighed, and the spun gold that was his hair billowed around his neck in his ponytail, the Konoha symbol on his navy headband standing out against the platinum blond. "I'm just surprised that your 9 year old girl is going through this much stress — was the attack that bad?"

"…Enough to make me draw my sword, man," Dad deadpanned slowly.

There was a moment of silence as Inoichi literally tripped over his own sandal at the words. I waited for the man to recompose himself. "Oh god…" The Yamanaka breathed, disbelief clearly seen in his blue orbs. "No wonder…"

"Could you do something, Inoichi?" Dad sounded impatient, and I didn't have to look to see the small frown on his face — I could  _hear_  it well enough.

The future Yamanaka Clan Head sighed before straightening himself. "I'll do what I can — I just don't think I'm as good as the other experts you could've called up. Are you sure you want  _me_  to do this? It's your  _daughter,_  senpai." I didn't miss the obvious concern in his words at the mention of me.

Dad sighed again, hand still holding onto mine. "I'm sure, Inoichi. Out of all the Yamanakas I've met, you're the best at this. Quit doubting yourself, and just please," a note of desperation went through Dad's voice and I couldn't help but look up at him. "…Just help Tomoko-chan."

I didn't realize Dad worried about me  _that_ much. I didn't deserve him.

Inoichi blinked, clear surprise in his blue orbs before he sighed again, a defeated smile on his face. "The fact that you're making such a face means that this is serious, huh senpai?"

"You got that right," Dad hotly retorted back.

"…Alright then," The Yamanaka sighed before turning to me, and I didn't miss how his expression morphed to that of sympathy and concern. His face alone showed what a great father he would be to Ino one day. "Tomoko-chan, I'll be taking you with me to look into your mind a bit, and we'll try to walk through and figure out what's going on, alright?"

Despite his gentle tone, a sense of dread went through me. "I-I-It's not going to hurt, is it?" I found myself squeaking worriedly. The ways Yamanaka investigation was shown in the anime didn't help me that much — since the only time I saw Inoichi do something similar was when he was interrogating Hanare, and  _that_ was cut away from the anime for a reason. There was so much blood that could be shown, so much  _torture_  before censors came in.

This was real life. There was no censors, and I already knew I would feel  _everything_ if things got that far.

"Of course not," Inoichi said gently, a hand reaching over to ruffle my hair. I didn't miss how his eyes went towards the lotus pin in my bangs before he looked back down at me. "It'll be just like you went to sleep — if this goes well, then the nightmares should stop."

"O-Okay…" I mumbled, closing my eyes once his hand went over to touch my forehead. It was the best I could ask for.

Immediately, all sense of my surroundings faded away as I found my vision going into myself. Strangely, when I opened my eyes, what greeted me wasn't an examination room but a vast expanse that reminded me of both the great libraries from Hogwarts and the Konoha library. From where I was standing in the area, I could see shelves and shelves of differently colored books, each with their own small titles that I couldn't see from my position in the center. At one point, the long expanse of book shelves ended at a certain wall with no windows, and when I turned my head, it was the same all around.

My mind was apparently a library of its own with a circular room design and everything.

"…This is interesting for a 9 year old girl's mind," Inoichi commented dryly, standing next to me while crossing his arms. "But at the same time, I'm not surprised, considering you're Judai-senpai's little girl."

Soon enough, I was surprised to see a book float out of a shelf to fly over to us, opening up to reveal an image once it decided to hover over my open hands.

Specifically, it started to show an image of my first meeting with Kakashi.

_...We really were small back then, weren't we?_

The way the image was playing reminded me of a flashback. I could easily see the past version of me move her mouth to talk and everything, even reaching over to offer her hand to the smaller version of my best friend.

Warmth filled my heart almost instantly.  _Kakashi-kun…_  The small version of the Hatake visibly smiled through his mask as he reached for my other self's hand, and for once, I didn't feel like I was inside my own mind. It didn't feel like I had to worry about the future or any silly nightmare.

For once, it felt like I was at peace.

Unfortunately, Inoichi-san took the moment to cough softly into his fist, breaking the atmosphere and making the book close up on itself and fly back into its original shelf. "It looks like there's nothing wrong here." I turned to look at him, and the Yamanaka smiled almost mournfully. "I'm sorry to break you out of a good memory, Tomoko-chan, but do you think you could show me the source of the problem?"

A sense of foreboding filled me as I nodded. "O-Okay, I-Inoichi-san, this way," I turned, and to my surprise, a staircase formed itself in the floor, leading downwards. I didn't pay mind to how my appearance seemed to have changed from the summer dress to a translucent galaxy-patterned kimono dress, blue stars and everything, choosing to escort the older man down. The staircase seemed to go down for quite a while, resembling the one I used to use when heading up and down my college's main library, and with each open door, a new library greeted us. However, the further we went down, the more I noticed the amount of decay and messiness in each new room.

Initially, it started with a few fallen books. Then, it started to escalate, with an older book smell greeting us as more books were out of their shelves and on the floor, appearing abandoned. By the time we reached the last door, I had seen far more than I would've thought possible, with some doors even having stray images and memories leaving the fallen, ashen remains that would've been books.

"…Will you be able to handle this, Tomoko-chan?" Inoichi asked slowly, his face looking a little green. Then again, with all the decay we saw the further we went down the stairs, I wouldn't blame him since some of the rooms had the strong smell of decayed book — and I can tell you one thing. It's not pleasant.

"…We have to, Inoichi-san." I sighed, lightly tugging at the hem of my sleeve before putting a hand on the old doorknob. "These nightmares are already unbearable." The metal rattled in my hand before I pushed the door open, and the incoming sight made my heart drop in my stomach.

There was absolutely nothing in the last room. Instead of bookshelves and fallen books, there were simply floating images, each more chaotic than the last, flying around in the air like birds. In the center of it all was a figure, kneeling on one knee and head bowed. I forced myself to walk inside, and with each step, the figure became closer with its characteristics becoming more clear in the fog.

To my shock and horror, the figure resembled  _me._

Or more specifically, the  _past me._

With long brown hair reaching the middle of her back, black glasses on the rim of her nose, and the same beauty marks on the left side of the mouth and right side of the nose. Heck, she even had the same chest size and height I once had as Vy, resembling a C cup and if not for her kneeling stature, she could've passed off to be Vy entirely.

This new person looked exactly like how I was when I died — minus all the blood and possibly ruptured lung — with the jeans, purple blouse, and everything.

Once I came close enough to be a few centimeters away from her left sneaker, the figure lifted her head to look at Inoichi-san and I, giving us both an eyeful of dark brown.  **"Hello there, I'm Hisako."**  Her voice was both soft and somewhat menacing, resembling my voice, but deeper. Almost mature.  **"It's nice to finally meet you, Tomoko-chan."**  I didn't miss the undertone of affection the woman had when turning to me.

It took about a few seconds for me to find my voice. "I-It's nice to meet you too," I found myself squeaking out uncertainly. "By chance, are you a byproduct of my mind?"

 **"In a sense,"**  the lady dubbed Hisako rumbled, getting to her feet to stand at full height. Now that I could fully look at her, she really was the spitting image of Vy. She looked to be about 5 foot 2 — the same height I had back then too. This was starting to get creepy if not for the stoic expression Hisako had on her face.  **"With all the visions and the recent trauma you had, you might as well call me a byproduct of your mind attempting to right itself."**

"…So you're not some kind of foreign entity, correct Hisako-san?" Inoichi-san added softly, hand on his chin.

Hisako simply gave the Yamanaka an exasperated look before turning back to me. It was the first emotion aside from the affection from before that I had ever seen from her. And from the looks of it, I only really reached the middle of her chest in height.  **"I'm not a foreign entity, _sir_." **I didn't miss the clear distaste running through the deep voice. And the slight bit of mockery at the last bit.  **"I may as well be an alternate personality. With the recent attempt on Tomoko's life, it's been hard to return to our place at the piano, and since music has been therapeutic so far, all the memories and nightmares that were once held back came at full force. I was created as a safety mechanism to deal with those memories so that our shared mind won't fracture anymore than it already has."**

…Was this becoming Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories without the figurative chains?

"S-So then, who's the real Tomoko?" I said slowly, biting the bottom of my lip. "W-When this all ends, who will wake up? H-Heck," I found a large lump in my throat, my hands becoming sweaty. "What's the point of all these dreams? A-Are they just anxious dreams? O-Or—" I couldn't help but notice the images floating around us even more, some becoming clear enough to show specific scenes.

_Kakashi, dead in the rubble._

_Obito, coughing blood from under the large rock crushing the entirety of his left side._

_Kurama, large tails destroying houses everywhere in sight._

"A-Am I supposed to be seeing these?" I didn't even realize I was crying until Hisako kneeled down to smile at me, wiping a tear away from my cheek.

 **"Don't worry, Tomoko-chan."** For such a deep baritone, I didn't miss the tenderness in her voice.  **"You did well handling all this until this point. Don't worry about the what-ifs right now."**  With a simple snap of her fingers, the images all disappeared, leaving the three of us in a simple white space.  **"I'm a part of you — and for now, let me take care of this. You need to focus on getting better on your side, alright? When this all ends, you'll still be the one in control. I'll just be handling everything in the shadows like I did before."**

Even then, the doubt just wouldn't go away. "B-But why?" I choked out, doing my best to wipe at my eyes with my kimono sleeve. "Why are you going this far for  _me?_  Why for such a pathetic girl like  _me?_ "

_For someone who can't do anything? For a civilian girl who can't even help her friends when the time might come?_

_Will I be able to save everyone?_

Hisako visibly frowned before leaning over to rest her forehead against mine, cupping my cheeks in her hands.  **"You dolt,"** she murmured, voice still soft.  **"Don't say that when nothing's happened yet. The future isn't set in stone. And I'm here to help you with all that."**  Warm chocolate stared into sapphire as a soft smile graced her face. Why—  **"Because I'm a part of you too. You gave me love — so I'll do my part to help you protect that love. You don't want to lose it again, right?"**

The image of Mommy standing over what appeared to be blood rushed through my head, and even in my emotional panic, I knew what to say. "Y-Yeah…" The tears were finally starting to go away, drying on my face. "Yeah."

The woman above me smiled again before shifting a little, lips lightly touching my exposed forehead in a soft kiss. **"Everything will be alright, sweetie. Don't worry."**

"…Okay…" I took a shaky breath, and by then, Hisako gave me another smile before standing back up to hold my hand, looking at the silent Yamanaka in the room.

Inoichi blinked for a moment before sighing, a small smile on his face. "Well, this is one of the weirdest things I've ever seen," He commented dryly, shaking his head. "But I guess it's fine now, huh?"

 **"Indeed,"** Hisako deadpanned, expression morphing into one of exasperation.  **"Now do me a favor and get Tomoko-chan out of here so I can clean this f-ing mess, alright? There's a lot of work to do."**

…Is it just me, or was she being sassy to the future Investigative T & I head?

I decided not to question it and looked up at the Yamanaka. "… Can we, Inoichi-san?"

The Yamanaka blinked before shrugging his shoulders. "Alright then, Tomoko-chan." He leaned down to take my hand and Hisako's, linking the three of us together. "Heading out now."

I closed my eyes, and the next time I opened them, I got an eyeful of worried brown.

_Dad._

"You alright, Tomoko-chan?" He asked softly, hand reaching over to smooth the bangs off my forehead.

If not for the lingering soft feeling on my head, I would've dismissed the whole thing as a dream. But my heart didn't feel heavy for once, and tears didn't accompany my next thought. The smile that came out of my mouth was, for once, genuine, and I knew it was going to be okay.

"I-I'm okay, Papa. Could we go home now? I'm hungry..."

In the back of my mind, I swore I could've heard a familiar deep voice laugh.

**"Well then, you piece of work. Let's handle this together, okay?"**


End file.
